Turmoil
by AyukaWind
Summary: A young girl is caught unawares by three members of the Akatsuki. The Akatsuki wants her for her power but is she willing to join them? Secrets and hidden pasts do come back to haunt you.
1. Startled

_**~I'll get the background information up on this sooner or later. Enjoy!~~**_

_A branch snapped and as if on cue the three Akatsuki members jerked back around. The thick foliage of the forest hid any motion that might have caused the noise. Their black cloaks swirled as they moved in the direction they had heard the noise come from. Another snap resounded through the air and they leapt forward landing on the bank of creek._

_A girl with long black hair sat at the base of a tree, frozen in place with a stick in her hand as she stared at the three men. One was nearly seven foot tall, with blue skin, blue hair, gills and a massive sword on his back, Kisame Hoshigaki. Hidan, a silver haired man of about six feet, held a long scythe in his hand as he stared at her. The last man was Zetsu, also six feet, with dark green hair and surrounded by a Venus fly-trap._

_For a moment no one moved and then in an instant the girl leapt up and dashed off behind the tree, leaving behind the stick she had been snapping. The three men leapt over the creek, giving chase immediately._

I tore through the woods, over fallen trees and brush. As I ran I could feel the chakra signatures behind me moving rapidly closer. Then without warning one blinked out. Fearing an attack from above by the vanished man, I kept an eye on the sky as I ran on. Just as I rounded a large boulder Zetsu appeared in front of me. I leapt back into the air and the flytrap on his cloak snapped shut inches from my foot.

A growth of vines sprang from his hands and lashed viciously through the air towards me. I summoned my chakra and sent a cloud of fire towards him. When the flames cleared he was on the other side of a small clearing that had just been formed by the fire. It was then that Kisame and Hidan caught up with us.

I turned to run again, but froze dead in my tracks as a scythe embedded itself in a tree trunk; its long handle blocking my path. Twisting back around, I faced the three men.


	2. Pandemonium

_She stood there quietly, watching the men as they sized her up. Not a word was spoken for several minutes. Kisame rested his giant sword against his shoulder and asked "Who are you?" The only response he got from her was a glare, to which Hidan muttered "Let's just kill her and get back to the base. She isn't worth anything to us." Her eyes flickered but she made no move to go anywhere. Kisame never took his eyes off of her, but he nodded to Hidan. "Take care of it quickly."_

The wood around the scythe's blade groaned as the scythe was ripped out of the wood. It swung towards me, narrowly missing my throat as I ducked back. It swung through the air back into Hidan's hand. His fingers closed around the handle, a large metal ring catching the light. A wicked smile crossed his face and he drew the scythe back before hurling it at me again. A surge of purple chakra swirled out around it as it spun towards me. The tendrils of chakra pierced into the trees behind me forming a cage that prevented me from moving out of the path of the incoming scythe. Drawing on my chakra I sent out a wave, which broke the cage around me. The scythe was only inches from me now. Taking one step forward I grabbed the scythe out of the air and hurled it back at Hidan in one motion.

Hidan caught the scythe easily. Another wave of chakra flooded towards me, the tendrils reaching out with razor sharp edges as it drew closer. My red chakra contrasted with his as it swirled around me in a protective shield. Hidan's chakra hissed and fizzled out as it struck mine. His face twisted in rage as he sent attack after attack, all of which were stopped by the shield.

Kisame made a hand sign and a massive wall of water rose of out of the earth and came crashing down towards me. I sprang away and took off running as the water roared towards me. After a minute I stopped and gathered my chakra around me as the water crashed down over top of me. It was forcing me to my knees as I tried to keep the chakra shield around me to protect me. The water gradually subsided until nothing was left but puddles on the forest floor. Kisame and Hidan stalked towards me through the path clear by his chakra. Kisame reared back and swung his sword forcefully, sending up another wave of water. I brought my arms up and blocked the wave from hitting me.

As the spray subsided I brought one hand to my mouth, formed a hand sign and cast a plume of fire at the pair. The heat sent up wisps of steam from the puddles. The jutsu succeeded in forcing the two back, but no damage was done to them.

_The battle that ensued between the Hidan, Kisame and the girl was fierce. Each side dealt blows to each other as Zetsu looked on from the sidelines. However, it was a while before either side was able to land a blow on the other. Hidan was the first to wound the girl. He sent his scythe, laden with chakra, spinning towards her. The raw power of the chakra broke through her defense and the scythe slammed into her side; cutting it open down to the bone. She staggered as blood poured down her right side. Kisame took advantage of this distraction and sent four waves of water crashing over her in rapid succession._

_She managed to withstand the first two waves but the third threw her back against a rock wall. The fourth slammed into her, tossing her along the wall. She regained her footing as Hidan and Kisame advanced on her. Hidan lashed out first, sending a mass of shuriken towards her. She disappeared as the shuriken imbedded themselves in the ground where she had been standing._

_Kisame and Hidan whirled around when they heard a grunt behind them. Zetsu had wrapped his vines around her arms and pinned her against a tree when she had reappeared behind Hidan and Kisame. Her face was twisted in a snarl of anger as she lashed out with her foot and sent Zetsu flying backwards. The vines were still wrapped around her wrists, binding them together behind her back. Hidan, Kisame and Zetsu closed in on her as she struggled to free her arms._

_They came within ten feet of her before a shock wave of chakra sent them flying backwards. The shock wave leveled everything in the forest in a half-mile radius and left Hidan and Kisame on the edge of the clearing. Zetsu on the other hand had dropped into the ground when the blast was sent out. Kisame and Hidan bounded back towards her and were joined by Zetsu. When they reached her, she had freed her hands and was clutching her side in pain._

_The Akatuski men simultaneously launched another attack, forcing her to retreat slowly across the area cleared by the blast. She defended herself bravely as the men advanced. But no matter how hard they tried, they were not able to get close to her to stop or kill her._

_Unknown to the young girl, Itachi Uchiha was on his way towards his teammates. He had sensed the large surge of chakra and recognized Kisame's, Hidan's and Zetsu's chakra among it. Immediately he went to their aid. _


	3. Cornered

_ When he arrived, her fire jutsu was clashing with Kisame's tidal wave of water. He sent his fire jutsu towards her. She barely had enough time to throw up her defense as both Kisame's tidal wave and his ball of fire slammed into her. Hidan snickered as she was tossed back against the rock wall and slid to the ground. As the men advanced on her she sent a slashing gust of wind which pushed them back a few steps._

_ Itachi was not battle-weary as Kisame, Hidan and Zetsu were and so was able to launch a series of attacks on her. Each slammed relentlessly into her, wounding her further and wearing down her strength. He walked towards her and she remained where she was standing at the base of the rock wall, unable to send a jutsu at him to keep him at a distance. As he came within six feet of her she reached for her chakra to force him away but made the mistake of looking into his eyes as she did so. His sharingan trapped her in his genjutsu, a nightmarish world of his own creating._

I was frozen in place as his eyes sucked me out of reality and into his genjutsu. The world around me blackened and I found myself chained to a wall in front of Itachi. Multiple clones appeared around me, all with whips in their hands. The clones gathered around, raised their whips and proceeded to snap the whips down across my skin. I struggled to retain consciousness as the torture seemed to go on for hours on end. I knew it wasn't reality, but I could no longer distinguish between the mental image I had become trapped in and the real world around me.

_ He continued walking towards her as his sharingan held her motionless with pain. His hand closed around her throat and pinned her against the rough rock. Her hand closed around his wrist as he tortured her mind with his genjutsu. Her face twisted in pain as she gasped for breath, her head twisting to the side. Itachi's grip tightened on her throat and she writhed in pain for a moment before her body went limp under his hand._

_ Itachi allowed her to collapse to the ground before he called on Zetsu to bind her hands behind her back. Itachi placed a binding jutsu around her neck that prevented her from being able to use her chakra. The jutsu was in the form of a slim choker around her neck. When they finished Itachi picked her up and the four men returned to the base with their hard-won prize._


	4. The Iron Doors

_Her limp body was brought into the Akatsuki base. Itachi, who was carrying her, was met by their sullen red-headed leader. Pein quietly watched Itachi as he entered the base. "Who is she?" Itachi glanced down at her, "Don't know. Ask Kisame. They were the one's fighting her." He said with a nod behind him._

_Kisame, Hidan and Zetsu trudged into the base and Pein sent an accusing glare at them. "Why didn't the three of you kill her? There were three of you against one girl!" Hidan glared at her battered body, "She wouldn't fucking die. She is stronger than she looks." Kisame nodded grudgingly, "She stood up to the three of us for a long time before we could even touch her."_

_Pein motioned for Itachi to take her to the cell they had in the base and that was the end of the matter among the men. The girl was left chained to the wall in the cell after Sasori bandaged her side._

I slowly regained consciousness and was greeted by a dull pain in my shoulders and a sharp throbbing in my side. Not to mention the splitting headache I had along with the image of red eyes burned into my vision. Upon regain full consciousness I found I was chained to a stone wall with my arms twisted painfully behind my back, hence the pain in my shoulders. There was something cold pressed tightly against my neck, but there was no way for me to see what it was.

I sat in an eerie silence for about an hour before the steel door swung open and cast some light into the gloomy cell. Kisame walked into the cell and unchained me from the wall. He jerked me to my feet by grabbing my shoulder with his huge hand. I stumbled out of the cell in front of him, my arms still cuffed behind me. The hallway I was now in was hardly any brighter than the cell which was a relief as I didn't think my eyes would be able to handle a change in lighting with the headache that I had.

After tripping a few times and being roughly pulled back to my feet by Kisame, we reached a set of iron doors. The doors swung open of their own accord and we entered a massive cavern. The rest of the Akatsuki stood gathered in a large circle in the center of the dimly lit cavern. I was pushed into the center of their circle and Kisame took his place in the ring.

Pein stood directly in front of me. The light from the few torches on the perimeter of the cavern flickered off his piercings. "Who are you?" I didn't grace his question with an answer. The Akatsuki was no friend of mine. "What is your name?" Pein hissed, but didn't move. When I didn't respond he raised one finger and motioned as if beckoning me. I felt a hard blow across the back of my neck and I blacked out.


	5. In the Hands of Sadists

**_~As always, any and all reviews/suggestions would be greatly appreciated! Thanks!~_**

_When she awoke her arms were chained above her head and she was still in the middle of the Akatsuki's ring. Pein stood directly in front of her, his ringed purple eyes staring into her grey ones. "Who are you?" Upon receiving no answer he motioned to Hidan who was standing behind her._

_Hidan drew back his arm and the thin blade he held in his hand slashed across her skin leaving a long shallow cut across her back. Pein calmly asked again "Who are you?" Again there was no answer and Hidan drew the blade across the skin again. Each time Pein asked and she did not answer Hidan took great pleasure in dragging the blade slowly across her back and watching the rivulets of blood trickle down to soak into her shirt._

_ It was not long before the cloth on her back was thoroughly soaked with blood, but they had yet to have received an answer from her. Her teeth were gritted tightly together and the men watching could see her body tense each time the blade pressed against her skin._

_Pein spoke again. "I'll ask you one last time. Who are you?" As each time before, there was no answer from the stony faced girl. Pein simply backed away from her so he was once again part of the ring along with Hidan.  
__The air began to crackle with electricity as each of the eight members summoned chakra to the rings on their fingers. The chakra grew until it formed a web between them, allowing the men to feed off of each other's chakra and jutsus. The glow of their chakra web cast an eerie lighting over them. She watched as tendrils of different colored chakra wove itself amongst the men. A look of apprehension crossed her face as Kakuzu stepped into the center of the ring. Bracing herself she took a deep breath and looked straight ahead._

_Gathering his chakra into his hand, Kakuzu formed a long whip. He stepped forward, reared back and cracked the whip down over her back with all his might. Her back arched and her head dropped to her chest as she bit back a scream. Kakuzu reared back again and her body jerked as the whip lashed down. The third time the whip came down a spattering of blood was flung into the air as the whip snapped back up._


	6. A Watery Prison

The sting of the whip across my back threatened to bring tears to my eyes. I tried to remain as still as possible while staring down at the floor_. It wouldn't last forever; I just had to wait it out. _My wrists and shoulders ached from the way I was chained. The pain slowly began to blur until it was a thick haze over my mind and no longer a tearing pain.

Staring down at the floor and not really registering the trickles of blood that grew around my feet I waited for the hell to end. A sudden lapping of cold water on my ankles startled me out of my daze. Kakuzu was no longer whipping me, but a sphere of water was rapidly enclosing me. I caught a glimpse of Kisame standing to my right as the water crept up over my waist. The cold water hit my back making each individual wound feel as if it had been set afire.

It wasn't long before the water nudged against my jaw. I tipped my head back, trying to keep my head above the rising water. Thankfully it moved quickly over my head, completely engulfing me in a sphere of water.

_How long could I go without air?_

Seconds slowly ticked by. My lungs began to burn after about a minute. With each passing second the burning sensation increased. Three minutes and my lungs were crying out desperately for air. My body was growing desperate for air and I found it hard to stay still as the moments ticked slowly by.

_She twisted in the bubble of water, her lungs aching for air as her body's needs won over her will to remain still. With each passing second her heartbeat pounded louder in her ears. Soon the pounding became a dull roar. Six minutes had passed._

_Her eyesight grew fuzzy as the lack of oxygen truly began to get to her. Her teeth were gritted as she fought against the urge to open her mouth to breathe. The chains holding her rattled as she twisted and fought, desperate for a breath of air._

_Finally her body gave in and she gasped for breath in her watery prison. As she inhaled mouthfuls of water and began to writhe, choking on the water Kisame watched eagerly. However she made no sign that she was ready to give in to their demands and slowly her movements became slow and sluggish. Her eyes dropped closed and Kisame was forced to release her for fear of killing her._

_The water rushed to the ground from around her and her body convulsed as she coughed up water. Her head was bent and her body shaking as she drew in gasping breaths. The members of the Akatsuki watched with blank faces as she struggled to regain her breath, blood red water still dripping down off her back._


	7. Give an Inch, Take a Foot

_~**My apologies for the short chapters, I haven't had any time to sit down and write out a full chapter. Things have been crazy but I'm doing my best. As always, p****lease review! Thanks!~**_

_She had barely regained her breath when the wall of water closed around her again. Her eyes flew wide as she struggled to remain conscious. When her body grew still the water was pulled away from around her. She coughed weakly, water spilling over her lips as she drew in much needed air._

_No one moved for a few minutes. She remained hanging by her wrists while water dripped from her hair. Pein eventually walked over in front of her. He lifted her chin with his left hand. His flickering eyes met her weary ones and they remained like that for several minutes, staring into each other's eyes and searching for a clue as to what was going on in their head._

_"Why won't you tell us who you are?" His voice was serious and quiet. She just shook her head without breaking eye contact. "Do you work for someone?" Her gaze flickered but she otherwise made no motion. He took this as an affirmative to his question and decided to press her further. "Who do you work for?" She coughed out a laugh and shook her head._

_He stared at her then the grip on her jaw tightened. "Who. Do. You. Work. For?" His voice was low and dangerous despite the impassive look in his eyes. Chakra seeped out of his fingertips and along her jawline. It found its way around her neck and slowly pressed itself against her skin. It suddenly began to glow a fiery red and she jerked away as if she had been burned._

_The glow faded but her jaw remained clenched tight in pain. The chakra glowed again and her chin jerked up, but his grasp remained firm, holding her in place. A slight shudder ran through her body before the glow faded again. "Did they send you here?" Her eyes glanced away from him before she nodded._

_His eyes widened slightly in surprise that he got an answer from her even as inconsequential as it was. He slightly relaxed the grip on her jaw, "Why did they send you here?" His eyes were sharp and accusing while hers simply didn't seem to care. The chakra slowly began to grow brighter causing her to try and turn her head away, only to be stopped by a tightening of his fingers._

I watched him carefully trying to read his expression. It seemed to be a mix of worry, anger and annoyance. I felt his fingers tighten on my jaw and the chakra wrapped around my neck began to burn. Shooting pains shot down my neck and into my already burning shoulders. It gradually subsided leaving me with a terrible burning sensation lingering.

I soon lost count of the number of times he asked the question. However it wasn't long before he realized his methods weren't working. His eyes flashed dangerously and I could see him contemplating killing me and being done with it. To both my relief and my dismay he simply backed away. A long silence ensued, the slow drip of my blood echoing in the cavern.


	8. Hallucinations, Seals & Secrets

A chill ran over me when the chakra in the room fluxed. The energy was so strong in the room that I could feel the static through the cuffs on my wrists. The energy built and then released in the form of a lightning bolt running down the metal chain. My body jerked violently, my hands yanking at the chain holding them as my body shuddered from the sudden assault. A second jolt of electricity quickly followed the first. The cold pain left a burning path everywhere it touched.

My arms were tingling; I could feel the formerly cold metal cuffs heating up around my wrists. Dimly I could recall that about three hours had passed since I woke up chained the way I was. _How much more of this could I take? _ There was nothing I wanted more than to be free of the chains at that moment. Cold electricity ran through me again, followed closely by a violent tremor as my muscles protested the harsh treatment. The next shock made me throw my head back in pain. I twisted and pulled at the shackles holding me in place. _If there was a list of things I hated, electricity would definitely be near the top._

At long last the current was broken. Gasping for breath I let my head drop to my chest. A few light shudders ran through me as my muscles slowly relaxed from their tight contraction the pain had brought on. The sound of footsteps sounded muffled, but each step still brought a fresh wave of pounding pain to my headache. A rough hand tipped my head back. I could feel my damp hair falling over the wounds on my back as I stared into Pein's eyes. He examined me for a moment before letting my head drop again and walking away. I stood there, staring at the floor with blurred eyes, unable to move from my position. The steady drip of blood was the only way to mark the passage of time as no new pain came. The chakra slowly faded and I realized I was now alone in the cavern.

Pain kept me awake as I drifted in the space between being awake and sleep. My shoulders had long since gone numb, I could only feel them when I shifted position and pain would shoot through them. Every now and then my side would twinge where Hidan's scythe had caught me in the battle the day before. I could feel the infection setting in, my side and back ached badly. It was slowly spreading through my veins, making me feverish and as time went on I slowly became delusional.

_The Akatsuki members had returned to their normal routine, leaving her alone in the massive cavern. She hung there in silence, her body went slack and her weight rested almost entirely on her shoulders. A fever crept over her, making her twist and turn slightly as she drifted back and forth between consciousness and sleep. The wounds on her back scabbed over; stopping the major blood loss but each small toss cracked the scabs and sent little trickles of blood down her back._

_Suddenly her head shot up and her eyes flew open. She threw her weight back, her hands clenched tightly around the chain above her head. Her cheeks were flushed lightly pink and sheen of sweat was evident on her face. With eyes wide open, she stared unseeing at the darkness around her. The fever burning through her was causing her to hallucinate. Almost without warning her chakra flared up, straining against the binding seal that held it out of her reach. It grew steadily, reaching out as if it were fighting off some unseen danger. Her eyes glazed over and slowly slid shut. The metal choker around her neck took on a faint red glow from the intense heat from her chakra fighting Itachi's within the choker. With each passing second the metal glowed brighter and brighter._

_Itachi shifted uncomfortably where he stood in the base, then her chakra flared out and he bolted towards the cavern. His comrades were not far behind him as they raced through the tunnels to the cavern. Itachi threw open the massive doors with a flick of his wrist and froze as he felt the full force of her chakra hit him. The walls of the cavern had muffled his ability to sense her chakra from a distance. Cautiously, he strode across the room to where she hung with her back to him. His footsteps echoed hollowly along with those of the other seven men. The amount of chakra in the room grew as each man had his at the ready in case she broke free and attacked. Itachi took one more step to stand in front of her. Immediately he released the chakra he held in his hand and called out for Sasori. Her eyes were closed and beads of sweat dripped down her temple. Her breath was coming in gasps and her head tossed from side to side._

_Sasori came to stand beside Itachi and examined her carefully with his eyes. He extended one hand and lightly touched her on shoulder. The chakra that had been swelling around her collapsed into nothingness at his touch. Hidan let out a string of curses as he left out a long breath, "I thought you bound her chakra!" Itachi simply sent a glare at the silver haired man and motioned him and the others away. Sasori glanced at Pein. "She needs medical attention now." The smaller man spoke with a slight question in his voice. Pein denied his underlying request for permission to take her to the medical bay. "Not yet, she hasn't given us any answers."_

_Meanwhile Itachi was studying her with a contemplative look. "Something's not right." Both Pein and Sasori looked at the Uchiha. "What?" Pein was immediately on edge. "I can still sense chakra emanating from her, but it's neither mine nor hers." Pein stared at her warily then Sasori spoke quietly, "What does that mean?" Itachi sighed and closed his eyes, "Someone else placed a binding spell on her before I did, but it doesn't restrain her chakra." He let out a long breath and opened his eyes again. "I don't know what it was binding; it may be some part of her memory, or…" Pein's eyes narrowed as he examined her again. "It was probably a precaution on the part of whoever she worked for. It could prevent her from spilling secrets such as her mission and who she works for." Itachi murmured deep in thought. _

**~Thanks for reading today's update (it's longer!) and please review ^_^~ **


	9. Striking a Nerve

_Itachi laced his finger with chakra and brushed it lightly over her cheek. As it trailed lightly over her skin a black spider web of lines blossomed from beneath his finger and over her skin like a tattoo. Curious as to how much of her skin it covered he ran his finger down her neck, over the choker and over the exposed skin on her collarbone. As more of it was revealed it took the shape of a chain, winding its way around her neck and across her face amidst a tangled web of symbols. Pein laughed mockingly, "How foolish do you get? That is the simplest of silencing seals. Even a child could release that." Sasori watched quietly, "Perhaps they relied too much on her not getting caught." A silence fell over the cavern as the three men stared at the young girl hanging there._

_Relief crossed Pein's face before being replaced with annoyance at being pulled away from his work for what now appeared to have been nothing. "Release the seal. Come back in the morning to get the information from her." Pein turned on his heels and stalked out of the room, his cloak billowing out around him. The short red head watched him go with a bored expression. Itachi pressed his thumb against the center of the seal on her neck and muttered a string of unintelligible words. The seal began to dissipate, wisps of black mist curling into the air and disappearing. When the last bit was gone Itachi dropped his hand and turned to leave but was stopped by Sasori. "She needs medical attention." Itachi glanced at the smaller man, then back at the girl and continued walking, "Hn, so give it to her." Sasori shook his head at the other man, but said nothing. His fingers lightly glowed as he trailed them over the wounds on her back. The red and swollen welts lost their angry red color and faded ever so lightly. Pleased with his work, Sasori ran his eyes over her limp form before leaving the cavern in silence._

Pain, that was all I could feel. I could see nothing and I could hear nothing. My world was solely pain. My mind was so sluggish; it was hard to process where I was and why I was there. Vaguely I recalled hearing voices around me earlier before I had relapsed back into unconsciousness. It took a while for me to clear the fog clouding my mind and fully come back to reality. Darkness surrounded me on all sides, broken by the sporadic flickering of the torches by the iron doors. Light flickered off the puddle of dark blood around my feet. I took a deep breath to clear my head and would have doubled over in pain if it hadn't been for the chains holding me up. A searing pain spread steadily from the center of my back. It felt as if I had ripped my skin apart. I had very little time to catch my breath for a loud groan echoed from behind me. The iron doors swung open and the Akatsuki members filed in and resumed their former positions around me.

"Who are you?" Pein's voice was as steely as my glare. The silence was broken by a loud crack and white hot pain exploded across my back. Sucking air in through my teeth I slowly relaxed my taut muscles. Another crack and my back arched. I hissed under my breath, blood was starting to trickle down my back again. "My name is Kasai." I spat out. Pein raised one studded eyebrow. "What were you doing in our territory Kasai?" I heard the rustle of a cloak behind me as an arm was raised. "I'm a mercenary. I had an assignment here." He took a step forward his arms crossed behind his back. "And what was that mission?" I twisted lightly and the chains rattled ominously. "What does it matter?" My voice was sullen and quiet. A sharp lash bit across my back, I bit my lip to keep from making a sound. I bowed my head to look at the floor and took a deep breath. "I was sent here to capture the two-tailed jinchurki." The other men cast glances at each other. Pein's look grew cold. "How did you know that he was in this area?" He paced around me angrily. "Who sent you here?"

I groaned and muttered quietly, "Orochimaru." I flinched backward as Pein whirled around and roared, "What?!" He gripped my throat and snarled. "Why did he send you here?!" I laughed as best I could around his tight grip. "To get the jinchurki." His grip tightened even further and I could no longer breathe. "What does he want with the jinchurki?" I jerked back and gasped for air. "Hell if I know!" He stepped back and his eyes flashed furiously but he collected himself.

He paced around me again. "Where is his base?" I shook my head and hissed, "I don't know!" He stopped beside me and his eyes searched my face. "You work for him, he went so far as to put a seal on you to protect you and you expect me to believe that you don't know where his base is?" He stepped closer and the whip immediately cracked down from behind me. My back arched and my jaw clenched. Black spots danced around the edge of my vision from the searing pain. Then everything went red.

_The Akatsuki's leader beckoned for Kisame to come forward when Kasai's struggles stilled from exhaustion. "Take her back to the cell. Sasori, go with him." He walked towards the doors when Hidan spoke up. "She hasn't told us where that bastard Orochimaru is." Pein fixed his cold stare on Hidan, "She was captured by Orochimaru and forced to come on this mission by the seal which is hidden on her back. She knows no more of Orochimaru's location than what she has told us." Behind him, Itachi's Sharigan spun slowly to a halt and a single blood red tear escaped his eye before being wiped away._

**(Also, a minor side-note here... Kasai translates as fire) **

**~And I'm right back at it again! A snowstorm hit today so I got in a nice long writing session, hopefully I'll have another chapter or two up tomorrow. Thanks again for reading and that's all for now!~**


	10. Down the Hall

_ Kasai wounds were bandaged and she was left on a simple cot in the cell. A length of chain was coiled by the bed, connecting her ankle to a metal stud in the wall. On the other end of the base Sasori was standing in the corridor beside Itachi. "You shouldn't be using Sharigan until you find a way to stop the deterioration." Sasori voice was hushed. "Hn." Itachi brushed a hair back and straightened up. "Kakuzu and Pein would have killed her long before they would have been satisfied that she told the truth." His expression was bored as he sighed, "It'd be a shame to waste power like that." With that he walked into the darkness of the corridor._

_ In the darkness of her cell Kasai stirred slightly. Her eyes flew open then she bolted upright and promptly collapsed back writhing on the bed. She sat up gingerly and reached one arm around to her back. Sticky warmth spread through her tattered shirt and she cursed. Wiping the blood off of her fingers onto her shirt she stood up carefully. The chain rattled behind her as she slowly paced out the perimeter of the cell. After finding that the only break in the walls was the cold metal door she made her way back to the cot. She leaned back against the wall next to the bed and slowly slid down to the floor. Her grey eyes stared at the empty blackness dully. Absent-mindedly her slender fingers played with the chain she held in her hands. After many hours of sitting in uninterrupted silence Kasai crossed her arms across her chest and rested her head against the wall._

_ Next morning came and went and still no one had entered Kasai's cell. It was almost midnight before Hidan came down the hall holding the key in his hand. He jammed the key in the lock, muttering curses under his breath about how the damned lock was rusted and wouldn't open. When the key finally turned in the lock he jerked it back out and kicked the door which swung partway open with a heavy groan. His purple eyes scanned the black pit until he saw a reflection flash off of the chain. Hidan ran his fingers through his slick hair and walked closer, his eyes able to pick out her form as he drew closer._

_"Hey bitch. Time to go see your new masters eh?" He knelt beside her and forced the key into the lock on the shackle around her ankle. When it clicked he yanked cuff roughly off her ankle and grasped her arm. As he stood up to his full 6'2 height Kasai was pulled to her feet. The chain clattered loudly to the floor as Hidan tossed it to the side and pulled Kasai out into the corridor. He set a brisk pace causing Kasai to stumble as she attempted not to tear open her wounds again. Hidan cast a look over his shoulder at her and released hold of her wrist. With a flick of his head he motioned for her to walk in front of him. "Don't fucking try anything." He snarled out his warning before barking out, "Left" when the corridor split in front of them._

_ The craggy walls gradually transformed into smooth polished stone the further they headed down the halls and away from the cell. Then doors began to appear, some wooden, some metal. At long last Hidan put a heavy hand on her shoulder and turned her to the left to face a solid wooden door. He reached over her and pounded on the door with a fist, "Open up you lazy asses!" There was a pause of silence and Hidan raised his fist to pound again when the door swung open. Kisame stood on the other side with mussed hair and no shirt. "What do you want?!" He snapped angrily while running a hand over his face. "The girl." Hidan shoved me lightly, turned on his heel and was gone. Kisame stared after him then turned back to Kasai._

**_~Just a shout out to xXNaomiXx ^_^ Thanks for the reviews guys, it means a lot!_**

**_Today's update is just a short chapter but I've got a good one on the way! Thanks for reading and please review!~_**


	11. No Choice

Kisame broke into a toothy grin when he saw me; his sharp teeth glinting dangerously. He stepped back and made a sweeping gesture with his hand. His voice was mocking as he said "Welcome to your new quarters milady." I stepped into the room cautiously and felt his gaze on the back of my head. The door slammed shut and several bolts clicked into place. The room I was standing in had two couches on opposite walls, several small tables and two desks. One desk was covered in scrolls and papers while the other was empty. Three doors were lined up on a wall; about six feet apart and each had a different color.

Kisame walked by me, his muscles rippling under his blue skin. He crossed his arms over his chest and yawned loudly. "This is my room." He tilted his head at a blue door behind him. "That's Itachi's." He indicated a black door to the right of his room. His eyes dropped and he suddenly looked exhausted. "That's yours." I followed his gaze to a red door on the left of his. He grabbed a small stack of clothing off of a table and tossed it at me. It landed in my hands just as he turned away. "There's a shower in your room. I'll be out here so don't bother to try anything." With that he flopped down on the couch, his legs hanging comically over the armrest, and closed his eyes.

I walked slowly into what Kisame had called my room. Like every other room I had been into so far it was dark and bare. Spotting the bathroom door I dropped the clothes on the bed and went in. Red towels hung on the rack; soap and shampoo were in the shower along with a washcloth. I decided that my best plan of action was to take a shower and find some way to re-bandage my back before it became infected again. I shed the tattered and bloodstained rags that used to be my clothes and stepped into the steaming hot shower. It was a great relief to see the dried blood rinsed down the drain. Gingerly I ran the cloth over the cuts on my back and sucked my breath in through my teeth. Twenty minutes later, my teeth were gritted tightly from the stinging pain but my back and side were cleaned.

Upon climbing out of the shower I found a stack of bandages sitting on the sink. I was both annoyed and grateful that someone had come in during my shower. After the long process of bandaging my back I collapsed onto the bed in the t-shirt and pants that I had been given and promptly fell asleep.

I awoke to a grumpy Kisame standing in the doorway. "Up." He ran a hand over his face and yawned, exposing his rows of pointed teeth. Dropping my legs over the edge of the bed I carefully got to my feet. I hid a wince when I took the first step towards him and my back tightened. Walking became easier the more I moved. Kisame followed me into the next room before telling me to stop. He plucked a shirt off of the couch and pulled it on. "Out." He pointed at the door which I opened and stepped into the corridor again. Despite having walked down the exact same corridor just the night before, there was nothing that cued me as to what direction we were going or whether or not we were heading deeper into the base.

My feet were cold from the smooth stone floor by the time we reached the end of the hall. A lone door was in the wall, and that was the door that Kisame knocked upon. A deep voice responded, "Enter." Kisame pushed open the door and glared at me until I went inside. Pein was seated behind a large desk piled with scrolls. He set the scroll he was reading down and rose to his full height. "Kasai." I raised an eyebrow as he turned so he stood facing me. "Kisame and Itachi are going to your 'partners' for now." He paused, "They will do as they see fit with you. That is all." Kisame held open the door and I exited the room in silence. _At least they weren't going to kill me right off the bat. _

_Kisame led Kasai back down the hall and through another maze of corridors. On the way he gruffly pointed out various rooms. "Den. Other den. Bathroom. Kitchen." He stopped outside of the kitchen. "That's all I'm showing you, you can figure out the rest for yourself. I'm going back to bed." He disappeared back down the hallway leaving Kasai alone by the kitchen._

It was miserable and degrading, but I soon discovered that the only thing I could do to keep myself busy was to cook or clean. There were plenty of both for me to do that was certain, but neither would have been my activity of choice had I been given a choice in the matter. On the other hand, no one forced me to do it which made it less embarrassing. That is, until I cooked the first meal for the Akatsuki. When I began to cook there was not a soul to be found. However when I was finished cooking the ramen and rice, men started appearing. Deidara was one of the first to get food and he only took one bite before he jabbed his chopsticks in my direction and announced. "She is the only one allowed to cook from now on, hm." Itachi barely glanced up from his food as he agreed with Deidara, "Hn."

**~The last little blurb was just an aside to the story, it doesn't really affect or contribute to the storyline in any way at all, I just felt like including it. Thanks for all the reviews and suggestions guys! I have added/modified the characters a bit, I'm sorry if that bothers you, it just works a bit better with my story. Thank you for bearing with me ^_^ ~~**


	12. Bloodshed

**_Author's note: The heights of characters I mentioned in Chapter One are not the correct/official heights. I modified them slightly to fit the story. If you would like to know the official heights, check out Narutopedia. Thank you to -chomp0-_**

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_Three days had passed quietly with nothing out of the ordinary. Kasai had spent much of her time wandering the halls of the base looking for a way out. Since she had been assigned to Itachi and Kisame all of the other members had left her to do as she wished while she healed. But on the fourth day of her relative freedom Itachi was ordered by Pein to start incorporating her into his missions and gain some use out of her. Kasai was walking down a hall with her arms crossed across her chest, lost in her thoughts when Itachi appeared in a spiral of smoke behind her. "Kasai." She stopped dead in her track and twisted around slowly to face him. "Yes?" Her voice was skeptical and wary of what he might want. "We have a mission." He beckoned her to follow him back to their living room. _

_Once there he handed her a solid black cloak and pulled his red and black cloak onto his shoulders. With a warning glance he handed her a scroll containing kunai and throwing shuriken. After she tucked away the scroll in the cloak Itachi touched her shoulder and transported the two of them outside the base. The look on Kasai's face when the smoke cleared from around her and she saw she was in the forest outside of Konoha said it all. Itachi's hand closed around a kunai hidden in his sleeve as he watched her examine her surroundings with a pained look. She felt a slight burn emanate from the choker on her neck, reminding her that she was bound to Itachi, whether she liked it or not. Her eyes settled on Itachi who spoke softly. "We have to retrieve a set of scrolls that were stolen from Konoha. The men with the scrolls will be coming this way. Kill anyone we come in contact with." Kasai gave a curt nod and turned towards the path. _

_Three men dressed in dark green vests and navy blue pants sprinted along the dirt path. Their breaths came in short gasps and sweat soaked their shirts. Only a few hundred feet separated them from the raven-haired Uchiha and sullen Kasai. The scrolls were clutched firmly in their hands, in plain sight for anyone who might have been around to see. Pounding feet closed the short distance between the men and their cloaked doom. The instant the first man crossed Kasai's line of vision she glanced out of the corner of her eye at Itachi who nodded and she sprang. A kunai plunged deep into the throat of the fair skinned leader. Blood gushed from the wound as Kasai ripped the kunai out and used her weight to push him to the ground. In one motion she stood on his back as he fell and whirled on the other two men. Despite her fluid motion Itachi's eyes did not miss the grimace that flashed across her face as she twisted. It was gone just as quickly as the kunai she plunged into either man's chest, effectively silencing any noise they could have created. _

_Kasai's look was dark and frustrated as she stared down at the ever growing pools of blood around the men. Itachi calmly picked his way over the bodies and collected the scrolls. He straightened up in front of Kasai. "Good job. A bit messy, we prefer not to leave any trace of a kill such as… this." He gestured to the large puddles of blood. Kasai glared but bent and grabbed one man by the collar and dragged him into the bushes. Itachi followed suit with the other two men. "We wait until Zetsu comes." Itachi leaned against a massive tree trunk and closed his eyes. Kasai's grey eyes trailed over him before turning down to the bloody kunai she still held in her hand. She turned it over a few times and then proceeded to wipe the blood off on the grass. _

_As the pair waited the kunai remained in Kasai's hands. There was a slight rustling sound to their right and her grip tightened on the handle. Itachi opened one eye then straightened up. "We can go now." He held out his hand expectantly. She glanced down at it before tossing the kunai and the scroll to him. He caught both easily and smoke swirled up, masking them from view. When it cleared Zetsu pulled himself out of the ground, walked over to the bushes and grinned, exposing sharp pointed teeth._

**~Hey there! A bit more action this time around, I thought it was getting a bit dull so here's a little bloodshed for ya. Reviews and comments are always, always welcome. Until tomorrow, (or the day after)~**


	13. Priorities

Kisame was the next to take me out on a mission. Pein had ordered us to collect payments from one of his contacts and to dispatch of them after the payment was made. Unlike Itachi, Kisame didn't trust me enough to give me more than three kunai, which he didn't give to me until we reached the pre-arranged location just outside of Konoha's gates. We stood in the shadows of the forest as people passed along the road to our right. Kisame appeared restless despite his bored look as we waited. The idea of killing him and escaping into the village crossed my mind briefly. I was at a slight disadvantage with no chakra. I could kill him with the kunai he had given me, but he had strategically positioned himself behind me and it would be a challenge to get the kunai past a skilled swordsman like him without chakra. Not to mention that without my chakra the Akatsuki was the only defense I had.

_Kisame propped his sword on his shoulder and watched the girl standing slightly in front of him twirl the kunai in her hands. She flipped it over then tightly clenched it in her fist. "Staring is rude." Kisame blinked in surprise but glanced away. "You might want to not be so obvious with that. You shouldn't scare the couriers before they give us the payment." Her eyes narrowed but she slid it up her sleeve. Kisame's eyes flicked up from her to the pair of men that was approaching slowly. He reached out one large hand and pulled Kasai deeper into the shadows with him. The men stopped and looked around, "Hoshigaki." Kisame grunted and the older man pulled out a parcel and tossed it to Kisame. Kasai watched Kisame unwrap the bundle out of the corner of her eye. He kept one eye on her as he examined the contents. "Where's the rest?" His deep set eyes flickering back and forth between Kasai and Kisame, the man patted his side. His partner shifted his weight and discretely pulled out several shuriken._

_"You seem… on edge Hoshigaki." Kisame jerked his head towards Kasai, "I got a feisty one with me today. I can't say she wouldn't take the chance to kill me if she got it." The man nodded and his attention was focused on Kasai as he tossed the bundle to Kisame. "There." He grinned, "Watch yourself, Hoshigaki, she's got an eye on you." He bowed slightly and backed away. They were several yards away before they turned their backs. Kasai quickly pulled her hand out from her cloak, revealing two kunai in her hand. She gave a backhand flick of her wrist and sent the kunai squarely into the two men's backs. They dropped without a sound._

_As the pair dragged the bodies into the woods Kisame muttered, "I am never turning my back on you when you have a weapon." A smirk tugged at her lips and she turned over her left hand. Kisame's eyes narrowed as she revealed the kunai hidden against her wrist. "I thought about it." He nodded curtly and plucked the kunai lightly off her wrist. They walked away from the bodies and into the depths of the woods. "Why didn't you?" At this she truly did grin and she held out her left hand again, but this time the two bloody kunai that she had used to kill the men rested in her palm. "Priorities."_

Kisame slowly took the kunai from my hand and wiped them on his cloak. He looked completely baffled at my answer. "Priorities?" I shrugged, "You aren't trying to kill me at the moment, neither is Orochimaru." He snorted, "Okay, how is that a priority?" "Staying alive comes before getting revenge. Also, I can't kill any of you until this, thing, is gone." I plucked at the choker around my neck and felt a sear of pain as heat flared within it. Kisame grinned, "Gotta give Itachi credit." He laughed, "It still doesn't mean I trust you. So give me back those shuriken." He glared down at me until I pulled the shuriken out of my cloak. "You're pretty good at that sleight of hand stuff." I laughed, "You're good at guessing, we should play poker together some time." He snickered. "You've got a bit of luck with guessing yourself."

**~Here it is! Took me long enough...~**


	14. A Costly Mistake

I sat at the desk in my room filling out a report on the Hidden Mist Village Kisame and I infiltrated the day before. Several other scrolls set to my right that I had filled out on previous infiltration missions. There was a knock on my door and I glanced over my shoulder, "Yeah?" Kisame's bright blue hair poked around the door. "Minami field. Itachi is waiting, so bring your stuff." I flicked the end of the scroll as Kisame shut the door and it rolled shut on itself. Pushing back my chair I grabbed my cloak and weapon's scroll from off the bed. The cloak settled over my shoulders as I tucked away the scroll and leapt straight upwards. My fingers hooked on the edge of the skylight and I pulled myself out after flipping the glass up. The glass clanked shut behind me as I dashed across the steep rock ledge. A few steps further and I leapt off the edge of the side of the mountain. Itachi barely glanced up when I dropped onto the grassy field opposite of him.

_Itachi was wearing a plain black cloak instead of his normal Akatsuki cloak and the hood was pulled over his head. Kasai followed suit and pulled her cloak around her, buttoned the front and flipped the hood over her head as she walked towards him. She came to a halt within two feet of him. He lifted a hand to his lips and smoke swirled around the pair, completely obscuring them from view. They reappeared within the Konoha village in a back alleyway. Itachi didn't speak a word but gestured for Kasai to follow him as he slipped through the shadows. Itachi sidestepped a man lying on his side against the wall. Kasai cast a glance down at him without breaking her stride._

_Itachi raised a hand to signal Kasai to stop. Kasai stopped and stepped behind him as he leaned against the wall. His deep red eyes carefully scrutinized every movement the man in front of them made. He was completely oblivious to their presence as he paced back and forth. From the shadows opposite of Kasai and Itachi stepped a large group of ninjas. Their profession was clear; swords hung at their sides and on their backs. The man who was waiting's name was revealed to be Sekkachi by the short leader of the ninja. A single long finger pointed to Sekkachi. "He has been making deals with Akuto. We need to find out who Akuto works for. "Itachi's voice was a low whisper in Kasai's ear._

_Sekkachi and Akuto blinked out of sight and Itachi let out a low snarl. He backed away with Kasai following him closely. They moved swiftly through the back streets until they reached the marketplace. Kasai hesitated as Itachi stepped out into the bustling crowd, but she followed him. Keeping their hoods drawn over their faces, they moved towards a less crowded section of the market._

We wove through the people, receiving a few odd glances as we went. Luckily it was a Saturday and the markets were crowded. Itachi caught my wrist and pulled me to the side. "They are over there." He pointed to a back corner of the market. "Get as close to them as you can." There was no need for him to explain why he was telling me to get close instead of doing it himself; he was notorious and would be immediately linked with the Akatsuki, causing a massive uproar within the village.

I made my way slowly through the crowd. Sekkachi and Akuto were also moving through the crowd in front of me. They appeared to be searching for someone or something as they walked. I began to notice that the group of ninja that had come with Akuto was now dispersed and combing through the crowd. Itachi caught my eye and indicated that he was aware of the men. Akuto was now only a few feet from me. The crowd was considerably thinner where we were now. Sekkachi stopped on the edge of the marketplace and turned around, scanning the crowd of people behind him. I was close enough to Akuto to hear him growl under his breath, "Orochimaru will not be pleased."

My head shot up in surprise and the hood fell back around my shoulders. Glancing over at Itachi, I backed away quickly. Sekkachi stared at me as I wove my way around people, prompting Akuto to turn around. His eyes flew open wide, "You!" Itachi saw his reaction and quickly crossed the distance between us as I pulled my cloak up. In his hurry his cloak slipped back and Sekkachi instantly recognized the red eyes. "Uchiha!?" Smoke swirled around us and we were gone before anyone else saw us.

I was confused when I felt my feet on the ground again, but there was still a grey veil in front of me. It swirled and I saw Itachi's outline. "We won't be going back to the base for a little while." He walked off and I followed him somewhat blindly. Not having my chakra to sense what was around me was infuriating at times, and now was one of those times. We walked for some time and finally the fog lifted. Itachi's hood was thrown back and it was easy to tell that he was seething by the harsh look of his eyes.

At long last he decided we were far enough from the chakra signature he had created when he brought us here. Itachi turned to face me, his red eyes spinning slowly, "Did you learn anything?" I nodded, "Akuto works for Orochimaru and Sekkachi is Akuto's inside contact." "Hn." Itachi didn't seem to be too pleased that Orochimaru was involved in this. "Did you hear anything as to why they were meeting?" "They were looking for someone for Orochimaru." He nodded, "We need to report to Pein."

-**It's been a long week and I feel like this chapter is a little discombobulated and doesn't flow quite right with the story. This is one chapter that I would love reviews and suggestions even more than usual. I have stared at it, walked away and come back after doing homework and I still can't figure out what it is. So I decided to put it up and come back later. Thank you for bearing with me! ^_^ -****  
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	15. Forewarned

_ Itachi reported to Pein alone when he and Kasai returned to the base. Pein looked up from his paper work expectantly. "You're late." Itachi nodded, "We ran into trouble. Akuto met Sekkachi in the village. Akuto works for Orochimaru and Sekkachi is his contact who also works for Orochimaru. Orochimaru sent Akuto and a group of ninja to find someone." Pein rolled up a scroll, "Orochimaru is increasing his power. What trouble did you run into?" Itachi pulled the scroll on which the report was written and handed it to Pein. "I sent Kasai too close to Akuto and Sekkachi. Her hood fell back and Akuto recognized her. Sekkachi did not, but when I went to retrieve her he recognized me." Pein looked up sharply. "Who else saw you?" "No one that I am aware of. We were facing away from the crowd and left immediately after being recognized." Jerking the scroll open Pein frowned deeply. "Is that all Itachi?" "No." Itachi's voice was short and clipped._

"Go on." Itachi pointed to the scroll held in Pein's hands, "Kasai should not go on any further missions with us for the time being. It is a possibility that Orochimaru is after her." Pein waved a hand at Itachi. "We are the Akatsuki, Orochimaru should know better than to try to take one of our members. If he is after her, he would know she is with us. That is all." He snapped out and dismissed Itachi. Itachi nodded and quickly left the room.

I sat in my room with a kunai in my hands. My nerves were still on edge from Akuto recognizing me after finding out he worked for Orochimaru. The sun set and my room plunged into darkness. I heard Kisame and Itachi talking in the living room just outside the door. Slipping the kunai under my pillow, I flopped backwards on the bed. Shadows flickered under the door as someone, most likely Kisame, paced back and forth. Then silence fell and the howling of the wind over the mountain was the only sound. Despite my mind constantly wandering back to Orochimaru I drifted to sleep.

_ The Akatsuki base was eerily silent. Everyone had gone to bed except Hidan, who was sharpening his scythe. Itachi was sitting up on his bed staring at the copy of the report he had filled out that day. There was something about the incident in Konoha that bothered him. He flipped the scroll to the side and leaned back against the wall. Meanwhile Kasai tossed and turned in her bed. Neither Itachi nor Kasai were able to rest well for the next several days as the events of that day continued to prey on their minds even in throughout sleep._

Three nights passed with neither Itachi nor Kasai able to get any rest. The sleepless nights were taking their toll on Kasai; the effects were plain to see as she pulled on her cloak in the living room. Kisame stood watching her, looking slightly confused as to why she was as lethargic as she was. Itachi stood in the doorway to his room and watch silently. Kisame grabbed his sword, Samehada, from where it leaned against the wall. "Let's get this over with Kasai." She nodded and the two vanished from sight.

The air was still, almost too still when Kisame and Kasai emerged outside of Sunagakure. Kisame latched Samehada onto his back and strolled towards the wall. An old man stood up from the base of the wall and jerked on a chain. At the end of the chain was a lanky man. The man's hands were chained in front of him and his feet were shackled together. His skin was covered in tattoos and a large seal ran across his exposed chest. The old man handed Kisame the chain and keys before walking back into the village. Kisame jerked the man to his feet and detached the chain from the cuffs around his wrists.

He pushed him along in front of us as we walked across the burning sand. Kisame grunted, "I don't know why I had to drag you along. I guess Pein was expecting trouble, because he would be no problem for you to take back yourself." Kasai nodded and then her head jerked to the side, towards a flicker of motion. A group of men were tearing across the sand towards them. Kisame grabbed the man's shoulder and pulled him behind him. The men drew closer and it became apparent they were qualified ninja, and even if it wasn't trouble for Kisame and Kasai, then it was going to be trouble for Suna.

I pulled out several kunai and slid them between my fingers as I prepared for a conflict. Kisame pulled Samehada off his back and rested the long blade on his shoulder. His tall stature, the massive bandaged sword and his shark-like appearance made for an impressive and intimidating sight. Nonetheless the men still swarmed towards us. The first several to reach us leapt aggressively at Kisame and were sent flying backwards by a single sweep of his sword. In the next instant they had completely surrounded us and only Kisame's wide range with his sword kept them at bay.

The weapons scroll hung open from my hip. The kunai I had in my hand were sent flying into the mass of men around us and four dropped to the ground dead. I retrieved a handful of shuriken from the scroll as Kisame sent a blast of water through the men. The shuriken lodged themselves in the throats of seven men who managed to withstand the blast of water. More ninja flooded in to take their places. The man in chains was looking around wildly for an escape route through the mass of bodies. I swung one fist out and caught him on the back of the head, sending him to the ground unconscious. The men moved in even closer. I pulled a kunai out and sliced the neck of a kunoichi behind me.

A rush of men moved in closer and slowly began to separate Kisame and me. Thankfully the weapons scroll Itachi had given me didn't seem to have a limit on the amount of shuriken I could pull from it. Bodies pressed in tighter around me, struggling to keep a safe distance I twisted and slashed at all within my reach. My arms were suddenly wrenched behind my back and the kunai was torn from my grasp.

**-Thank you for reading, please review! ^_^ -**


	16. Realizations and Threats

**Authors note: I recently realized that my auto-correct changed the spelling of Sharingan to Sharigan in the previous chapters. And I didn't check it closely enough to notice... I am working on fixing that. **

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_The tip of a katana was pressed against her neck, holding her in place and shadows were wound around her wrists binding them tightly. Kisame whirled around, leveling everyone within reach of his sword. He hesitated momentarily when he saw Kasai surrounded by ninja with a blade against her neck. Even as he watched she was being pulled further away. Finally he could hesitate no longer as the men started to close in. Kisame slammed his sword into the ground, a large wave of water surged up around Kisame. The water crashed down over the spot where Kisame had stood along with the prone body of the man._

_The choker around Kasai's neck burst into flames as she fought to gain control of her chakra to defend herself. Amidst the chaos that surrounded her she saw Kisame pick up their target and with a despairing glance at her, vanish from sight just before the water crashed down. The chaos slowly settled as the ninja regained their formations. Kasai's wrists were quickly bound with rope and a syringe needle slipped into her arm. The plunger was pushed and Kasai collapsed to the ground, causing the flames that were flickering on the collar to be extinguished immediately. Kasai was thrown over the back of one of the older ninjas and carried away across the desert._

_The base appeared empty when Kisame arrived with the now semi-conscious body of his prisoner. He pulled him by his neck down the hall to the living room. "Pein! Itachi!" Itachi appeared first in the hallway with Pein hot on his heels. "Kisame?" Pein stepped around Itachi, and Kisame threw the man down on his feet. "The fuckers took Kasai." Pein and Itachi both froze. "Who?!" Pein demanded. "Who, I don't know, but Akuto was there." Itachi cast a glance at Pein, "What happened?" Deidara and Sasori came strolling down the hallway and joined the group. "We picked Baundo up from Furui with no problem and we were heading back when they came after us from the direction of Konoha. We got separated and I had no choice but to take Baundo and get out." Pein hissed through his teeth. "She knows where our base is. Itachi, Deidara, Sasori, patrol the area. Kisame, throw him into the cell and warn Hidan, Kakuzu, and Tobi. We'll deal with him later." The men nodded and quickly left, but not before Pein caught the accusing look Itachi sent at him._

_It was a week before Pein summoned Itachi from patrol and ordered him to report to his office. Itachi's cloak swished quietly as the door swung open and he stepped in. "Is Kasai still bound by the chakra seal?" "It can only be unlocked by Sharingan." "Why did Orochimaru want her?" A scroll was torn in two and hurled against the wall by Pein. "Did she work for Orochimaru?!" His fists slammed down on the desk as he stood up. "She was forced to work for Orochimaru. She was not sent to gather information on us." Pein slammed his hand down on the desk again. "You saw it coming, you knew he was going to try to get her back. Why?!" Itachi reached into his cloak and pulled out an ancient scroll, "She was strong when Kisame and Hidan fought her, but she was exhausted before the fight even began. The tattoo on her ankle was a special form of a demon seal. It binds the demon to the wearer but the demon is sealed in another's body." He paused, "She had captured the two-tailed jinchuriki and created a summoning seal before Kisame, Zetsu and Hidan even found her."_

_Pein sat back into his chair defeated and looked at the rolled up scroll. "You didn't know until now what type of seal it was?" "Hn. It's only been used a few times that have been recorded. It's hard to bind a demon, let alone to summon a demon and it's jinchuriki at your will." Pein's eyebrow twitched and light glinted of a metal stud. "And she is now under Orochimaru's control…" "Hn." Itachi didn't seem perturbed by the idea of Orochimaru having Kasai under his control. "Take Kisame, Deidara and Sasori with you and retrieve her. If you can't extract her, kill her. We can't risk Orochimaru gaining complete control of her. And bring back the jinchuriki at all costs." He stood up and tucked the scroll under his arm. "I don't need to remind you of what will happen if you fail." Itachi's eyes flashed angrily but he said nothing as he left._

**-Hey again! Thanks for reading, it would mean a lot if you would take a minute and review the story/chapter. I would truly appreciate it! Thank you to all that have reviewed so far.-**

**P.S. Happy St. Patrick's Day! ^_^ **


	17. Into the Pits of Hell

For several weeks the two pairs of partners scoured the country for a clue as to where Orochimaru's hideout was. Many of the leads that they turned up led nowhere, until they found Akuto relaxing in a hot spring in the Mist Village. It only took Kisame's threat of Itachi's Mangekyou Sharingan for him to tell them where Orochimaru's base was located in the mountains around the Lightning Village, Kumogakure. Sasori quickly dispatched of Akuto and sent his body up in a pillar of flame.

While they walked through the trees on the mountains surrounding the Lightning Village Sasori studied Itachi's expression. "Why are you so determined to get her back?" Kisame and Deidara glanced over but kept their peace waiting for Itachi's answer. "I don't care about the girl." A snort escaped Deidara, "Denial is the first step on the road to admittance." Itachi's glare was enough to silence Deidara, but it did nothing to wipe away the smirks Kisame and Sasori both had on their lips.

Kumogakure rose over the horizon into view. Deidara and Kisame split away from Sasori and Itachi when they entered the village. Deidara created a large clay bird and flew Kisame and himself over the village towards the building that Orochimaru inhabited. They circled over the roof, surveying the situation. Deidara pulled a lump of clay out of his pouch, the mouth on his hand chewed it up slowly and spat it back out. His eyes remained scanning the rooftop for signs of life as his fingers nimbly worked the clay into multiple small sculptures. Kisame grunted in annoyance when Deidara looked down proudly at the collection of small sculptures in front of him. A light flick of Deidara's wrist sent the figures off the bird and scattered them strategically around the roof. Kisame lifted Samehada onto his shoulder and raised an eyebrow at Deidara. "Insurance."

The blonde landed his bird on the roof swung himself off before making the hand sign to dissipate the bird. It vanished with a poof of smoke from underneath Kisame. However Kisame landed on his feet and shot daggers at Deidara. He swung his sword out with the tip resting just under Deidara's chin, "Watch yourself bombshell." He snapped the sword back around onto his shoulder. He then sauntered across the roof to the stairwell, taking great care to not step on Deidara's explosive clay figures as he went. He ducked through the doorway and promptly threw out his fist to successfully pin the guard to the wall by his throat. There was a dull thud as Kisame dropped the body with Deidara's knife still lodged in the skull. Kisame stepped around a corner as Deidara placed his foot on the man's face and pulled his knife out, muttering about how he liked Sasori better. Despite the complaints he remained close on Kisame's heels as they headed deeper into the building. It was not long before both Deidara and Kisame were on edge. The guard they killed on the stairs to the roof was the only person they had encountered. There wasn't a single room that they had missed and every room was devoid of life but gave the appearance that it was inhabited on a daily basis.

A loud thud echoed through the hall Deidara and Kisame stood in. Deidara whirled around, his blonde hair whipping out around him. Kisame stood behind him, a look of annoyance and worry darkening his features. He was leaning on his sword and staring angrily into the empty room at the end of the hall. "Dammit. I can smell him everywhere. It smells like… bloody reptiles." A shudder of disgust ran through his tall frame. Deidara stared at him quizzically and Kisame practically snarled, "Sharks are NOT reptiles you fool!" His hands flying up in defense, Deidara yelped "I never said anything!" "Damn straight you didn't..." Kisame grumbled then perked up. "It's about damn time you got here Itachi."

At the far end of the building Itachi and Sasori slowly walked through the deserted hallways. "Either Deidara and Kisame did their job well or there was no one here to begin with." Sasori mused aloud. "Hn." Deidara rounded the corner followed closely by Kisame. "Nothing. No one. Nothing. Orochimaru may have been here according to Kisame, but this isn't his hideout." Itachi walked between the two, leaving them staring at Sasori. "We searched the place there is no one here!" Deidara called after him. He was immediately cuffed on the head by Kisame at Sasori's silent request. "This building may not be the hideout, but it is the gateway to it." Itachi's low voice echoed hollowly around them.

Sasori watched with half-lidded eyes as Itachi bit his thumb and dripped blood over a marble pedestal resting against the far wall. The blood hissed and went up in wisps of smoke but the wall parted in front of him to expose a spiraling stone stair case. The men silently trailed down the staircase after Itachi. The darkness they descended into was broken only by the weak flickering of the occasional lamp. As they continued down the staircase a soft red glow appeared at the end, but still it appeared to stretch on forever. The glow intensified, unveiling kanji symbols on the walls which warned that one could only go down the stairs, because one does not rise up from the pits of hell. Kisame snickered, "I hope Hades realizes that it takes more than that to scare off the Akatsuki."

The staircase ended in a massive cavern. A large snake head loomed against the wall, its mouth spread open wide, long stone fangs protruding on either side of pathway that led into the mouth and the flames that danced in its eyes were the source of the red glow. Sasori and Itachi took it all in without batting an eyelash. Kisame and Deidara on the other hand allowed their disdain to show openly as they walked into the snake's gaping mouth. Several stone archways and empty corridors later, the group entered the first of many rooms. It was an office or study of sorts. A large desk sat at the center and bookshelves lined every wall. Papers and scrolls were piled high on the desk, pouring out of open drawers and stuffed in every available space on top of the books on the bookshelves. Jars containing various body parts were littered around the room, some human, some animal but all were carefully labeled and preserved. Just from a glance they could tell the books were strictly medical jutsus and spells.

They entered another corridor and looked into a room off to the left. More body parts in jars lined the walls of this room. But this time, they were all human. Heads, arms, legs and feet were soaking in formaldehyde filled glass jars. Pages of notes covered the floor and many of the jars. Deidara was the first to turn away but his expression remained blank. The next room was exactly the same, with white walls and examining tables in place of bookshelves and desks. It was obvious the men were disturbed by the vast collection of body parts Orochimaru had accumulated and stored in the three rooms, but none were willing to let it show. But no matter how stoic, none of the four were prepared for the room they entered at the end of the corridor.

**-A special thank you to Demon skitty! I stayed up late making this chapter longer. And well, I didn't quite get it as long as I wanted it to be, but... I love me some cliff hangers xD Please review or comment or better yet, do a snow dance for me so I can stay home and write ^_^ - **


	18. Unexpected & Inexplicable

_ White walls rose from a stone floor to a tall domed ceiling. Long steel tables lined the grated walkways. None of the men moved over the threshold. Shock was spread across each man's face. Itachi's eyes were wide as he beheld the sight before him. Entire human corpses hung by their arms along the starch white walls. Some still appeared to be living, the chains that suspended them just above the ground rattled slightly as if they were breathing. Blood ran in a thick stream underneath the grates along the walkway. In the center of the room was another steel table. A body lay on top with a breathing mask over the face. Tubes and needles projected from the arms that hung limply off of the table. The torso was split open from the ribcage to the belly button and it was clear that there were no longer any organs left aside from those within the ribcage. And yet, the chest still rose and fell with each breath._

_ Blood tripped off the fingertips and splattered through the grates near a pair of sandaled feet. Kisame slowly turned to look at Itachi; his entire body was tense and the grip on Samehada's handle was so tight that his knuckles turned white, despite the blue color of his skin. Itachi was frozen in place, completely oblivious to the stares of his partners. He took a tentative step forward and Sasuke spun from where he stood over the bloodied metal table. His feet tapped lightly as he sprinted down the walkway then up a series of metal steps to flee the room. Sasori reacted quickly, his arm flying out in front of Itachi. His look warned Itachi not to follow Sasuke. "He is not our mission." He cautioned. Deidara was the only one who was able to see Itachi's hands spin the signs to create a shadow clone. The clone pulled himself out of Itachi's body and sprinted after Sasuke._

_ Kisame stared after the clone, his face clouded with a mixture of emotions. He knew the mission was now in danger of being completely derailed. There was something about Kasai and the two-tailed demon that Orochimaru wanted to keep out of their reach. Sasuke would never have run from his brother as he did without trying to kill him first. Kisame was not as skilled in strategy as the former Uchiha prodigy was, but he recognized the ploy to distract and divide the group. Apparently, so did Sasori. His casual demeanor hid the watchful eye he kept on Itachi and their surroundings._

_ Gradually their attention was brought back to the grisly scene before them. Recognition flitted, in turn, over the men's faces while they walked through the room searching for Kasai's body among those along the walls. Many of the bodies belonged to former Akatsuki correspondents, informants and targets. Deidara stopped in front of a man and looked him up and down. "Shibaru…" Kisame glanced over at the blonde, his normally blue skin tainted by a greyish pallor. "He's been on your bounty list for a long time hasn't he." Deidara nodded and moved on past the row of mangled bodies to where Sasori stood with Itachi. "Orochimaru had their bodies modified and tortured them to see how much the modified bodies could withstand."_

_ "We need to get Kasai. Look for the two-tailed jinchuriki. Orochimaru may have already forced Kasai to summon her. If you find the body of the jinchuriki then Orochimaru becomes an objective. There are to be no loose ends resulting from this mission." Itachi's voice was firm and decisive, but his eyes remained latched on the door which his younger brother and clone had vanished behind._

_ Deidara stalked away from the group eager to get the images of the bodies out of his mind. He yanked open the first door he came to and instantly slammed it shut. Sasori jerked in surprise at the loud bang, "What the hell Deidara!?" Kisame was the first to voice his question and quite loudly at that. "Who the hell keeps snakes in a closet, yeah?!" Deidara stomped on the single snake that had escaped when he opened the door. The next several doors he opened all turned out to be closets, most of which contained preserved body parts and surgical supplies. Thankfully, none of the other closets contained snakes or any other type of reptile._

_ The other three watched Deidara open door after door in frustration. Regardless of the mission they were on the sight of Deidara cautiously opening a door, only to slam it shut when it revealed a closet, greatly appealed to their twisted senses of humor. Deidara paused in front of a door and warily extended his hand to the doorknob. He slowly pulled it open and peered around the door. Kisame glanced at Sasori in bewilderment when he didn't move. "I think you guys should come here, yeah." Lithe fingers twisted a kunai in Itachi's hand belying the appearance of calm on his features. Deidara swung the door open so the others could see in._

_ A shimmering translucent wall blocked entry to the corridor to which the door opened. On the other side of the wall were the crumbled remains of walls and rooms. Amidst the remains paced the two-tailed beast, Matatabi. Angry blue flames coated her entire cat-like body igniting some of the rubble into flame when she touched it. She sensed the powerful chakra signatures in the doorway and leapt towards the men snarling viciously. The wall flexed and she was thrown back on to her haunches, flames blazing even higher around her. Sasori withdrew a scroll from his cloak which unrolled as he lifted it against the wall. In a monotone voice Sasori recited the sealing incantation. The wall shimmered and warped as it began to shrink in around the two-tailed beast. Matatabi let out a harsh yowl of protest as the seal closed around her and her spirit was sealed into the scroll. The flaming body dissipated along with the wall leaving Sasori with the two-tailed beast sealed away in the scroll. _

_ "One down. One to go." Kisame muttered with fake optimism as he picked his way over the smoldering rubble that used to be a corridor. There was no longer a ceiling only a gaping hole revealing the floor above them. Three doors still stood in the rubble. Only one door still had a wall intact around it but if Kisame stood on the pile of crumbled stone next to the door he could have seen over the wall into the adjacent chamber because of the lack of a ceiling. Sasori tried the door but it did not budge, not even after Kisame rammed his shoulder against it in hopes of jarring it loose. The puppeteer beckoned to Deidara who gladly pulled a lump of clay from his pocket. His ring glinted as he pressed the clay around the doorframe, smiling slightly. He took a step back, smirked and pressed his thumb over the detonator._

_ The immense look of satisfaction that lit up Deidara's face was wiped away in an instant when he saw what the door had been blocking. The body of the two-tails' jinchuriki lay on the floor in a pool of blood. Just beyond that was a long row of cylindrical glass chambers. "He will stop at nothing to find immortality." Sasori murmured in a mixture of awe and repulsion. Sasori led the way down the row of chambers, pausing occasionally to look at the person contained there. Of the chambers that were occupied, most appeared dead. However there were several that had I.V. tubes and breathing masks. Deidara's cerulean blue eyes danced over the chambers until they lit on one chamber towards the end. "There she is, yeah!"_

_ Kasai was in the seventh to last chamber in the row. Like all the other occupied chambers, red-tinted water swirled lazily around her. Her long black hair was partially held by a tie in her hair. The clothes she was wearing could hardly have passed for rags. Tattered and bloodstained they revealed much of her body except for that covered by undergarments. Cuffs bound her wrists and ankles to the sides and bottom of the chamber. Kasai's body wasn't in much better condition than her clothes. Cuts and burns covered most every inch of exposed skin, excluding her face, which was cut severely but had been spared from the burns._

_ When they reached the chamber Kasai was held in they hesitated. "Do we kill her or take her back?" Kisame shifted the sword on his shoulder, "I mean, she looks almost dead already…" Itachi sighed, "We try to save her, but first priority is getting her out of here with us." The others nodded in agreement. "Just blow the lock, the water should absorb the impact." Deidara nodded at his partner's advice and put the clay into place. Kisame stepped back, but Itachi remained where he stood next to the chamber with a distant look in his eyes. Unaware Itachi was not about to move away, Deidara pressed the detonator and the glass shattered outward, followed by a rush of the red liquid. Kisame gaped in shock as a piece of glass pierced through Itachi's neck and his body was thrown to the floor by the force of the water._

**-Anywho, do your thing, read, review etc. _Thanks for reading! _Until next time ^_^ -**


	19. The Clay Pouch

_Itachi lay on the floor in a pool of water that was growing ever darker with blood. His eyes were glazed over and his breaths came in rough gasps. Deidara stared in shock at Itachi's motionless form. His hand tightly clenched around the detonator. How could Itachi be so careless as to let this happen? The question weighed heavily on the minds of the three men. As the oldest of the remaining men, Sasori took control of the situation."Kisame take Itachi back to the base. We will be behind you with Kasai." Latching Samehada onto his back, Kisame knelt beside Itachi's slowly bleeding body. His brows were tightly knit in concern as he pulled off his headband and tied it around the gash. Grasping Itachi's shoulders he pulled the younger man into a sitting position then slung him over his shoulder. One arm wrapped firmly around Itachi, pinning him to his shoulder, Kisame straightened up. Blood tinted water sloshed around his feet._

_Casting one last glance at Sasori, Kisame stepped over the shards of glass and walked to the semi-destroyed doorway. A throaty gasp came from Itachi and his heart slowly beat to a stop. Kisame went rigid where he stood in the doorway, poised to step over a pile of rubble, his eyes wide with alarm. "He…" Kisame lowered Itachi from his shoulder and laid him on the ground. "He's dead." Eyes flying wide open, Sasori sprang to Kisame's side and crouched next to Itachi. Two fingers pressed against Itachi's neck searching for a pulse but there was none to be found. Sasori's hand lingered where it was as he patiently waited for Itachi to regain his heartbeat. Gradually it dawned on him that Itachi was not going to come back to life. His heart had been stopped for too long and he had lost too much blood."Shit." _

_Sasori pulled his hand away and clenched his fingers into a fist which he rested on his knee. Seconds after Sasori's fingers left Itachi's neck the Uchiha's body vanished. Sasori jerked back, Deidara's eyes flew open and Kisame chuckled with relief. "That bastard." However, the disappearance of Itachi's shadow clone had other implications for Sasori. "He went after Sasuke himself." He shook his head making his bright red locks of hair toss back and forth. Letting out an aggravated sigh, he stood up and wiped the blood off of his hand. "Deidara, take her back to the base. We are going to retrieve Itachi." With that, Kisame unlatched Samehada from his back and followed the short red-head out of the room grinning wickedly. The blonde groaned as Sasori and Kisame took off without another word. "Why do I get stuck with this kind of crap? I'm not a bloody delivery boy, yeah!" Throwing his hands up in frustration Deidara turned back to Kasai. He muttered angrily under his breath while he made his to where she remained chained in what was left of the chamber._

_Deidara stepped onto the steel platform that served as the base of the chamber. Tugging on the cuffs around her wrists he made a sound of disapproval. "Of course there is no lock… just had to make things as hard as possible, yeah." He muttered in frustration. As he knelt in front of her he undid the buckle on his clay pouch. The mouth on his hand bit off a small piece of clay and spat it out in two even smaller lumps. He slapped one piece against the hinge of the cuff on her ankle and set it off. The small explosion split the cuffs in two but left an open gash on her ankle. Deidara rocked back on his heels, "Shit..." He jerked the cuff roughly from around her ankle and tossed it to the side. Then he repeated the process with the other cuff, but this time was careful not to all the explosive to touch her skin._

_Deidara stood up and rolled a ball of clay between his fingers contemplatively. Tucking it back into the pouch which hung open at his hip, his hand reached hesitantly for the I.V. tube that extended from her arm. A finger lightly brushed the protruding needle and he quickly pulled his hand back. "Damn it Sasori! I'm not a medic either!" he set his jaw tightly, grasped her arm firmly and yanked the first needle out. He received no response from her regardless of the blood which now trickled down her arm from where he had torn out the needle. And so he moved to her other arm. With his thumb pressing firmly into the crook of her elbow, he grasped the tube and jerked. This motion elicited a slightly muffled moan from Kasai. Next Deidara turned his attention to the cuffs binding her bruised wrists to the metal support rods embedded in the glass. He squeezed a small ball of clay in the metal joint on both of the cuffs. The chain rattled and clanked as the cuffs split and fell against the glass. Kasai's knees buckled and she collapsed forward. Deidara caught her easily, supporting her with one arm as he pulled the breathing mask off of her face and tossed it to the side. Wrapping his left arm around her waist he draped her right arm over his shoulder to carry her._

_He hopped off the platform and grunted in exasperation when she fell limply against him. "Why can't you at least be half awake, yeah?!" Long strands of hair fell into his face as he buckled his clay pouch then lifted his head to look at her._ Deidara_ dropped his hand from her waist and leaned towards her in one smooth motion to catch her over his shoulder. He blinked in surprise at the weight, or lack thereof, that Kasai had. Shrugging it off, he traced their steps back to the spiral staircase. Before he stepped onto the stair case he shifted Kasai in his arms and pressed two fingers against her neck. "You still alive, hm?" The pulse beneath his fingers was there, but it was slow and sluggish. Reassured, he shifted her back onto his shoulder and bounded up the stairs._

_**-Take two... thanks for reading guys! ^_^ -**_


	20. Uh Oh

_Kisame frowned anxiously as he and Sasori discovered more and more blood splattered on walls and over the floor. Soon the soles of their shoes were stained a deep red from the puddles of blood they stepped through. "What in hell can bleed this much and still be alive?" "Clones." Sasori's voice was clipped. Kisame sniffed and wrinkled his nose in disgust. "Orochimaru's clones... Let's hope Deidara gets back to the base soon. If he has any more clones we are gonna need Hidan and Kakuzu's help." Sasori grunted in response and pulled out a scroll which he waved under Kisame's nose. "These are even better than those two fools, even though they may be 'immortal'. Hmph." This earned a snort from Kisame. "I'd rather have real people." "There you go." Sasori pointed to three figures of Orochimaru waiting about forty feet down the hall. "All yours shark boy."_

_A series of loud pops sounded as Kisame cracked his knuckles. He took off running down the hall and was met halfway by Orochimaru's clones. Kisame reared back and swung. The three clones caught the brunt of Samehada's swing across their chests. They skidded backwards, slipping on the slick blood beneath their feet. Lunging forward Kisame swung again. The sheer force behind his swing sent the clones airborne and crashing through the plaster wall. Grinning like a blue skinned devil shark, Kisame came crashing towards them._

_One of the clones went flying to his untimely death of a broken neck by a well-placed kick from Kisame. He turned on the other two clones with a vengeance. Another blow from his massive sword took care of the remaining two clones, pounding them against the stone floor and completely crushing them. Kisame turned away from the blood spots that marked where the clones had been killed and shrugged his shoulders. "Now that," he tipped his head to the side and cracked his neck, "was fun." Sasori gave him his famous bored glare before carefully picking his way over the rubble Kisame had made of the wall. "You could try not to be so destructive. It tends to draw attention."_

_Once on the rooftop it only took Deidara a few minutes to summon his clay bird and to shift Kasai onto its back. He leapt up behind her and the bird took off into flight. Out of the corner of his eye Deidara caught a glimpse of motion. Flicking his bangs off of the scope on his left eye he focused on the source of the motion. It turned out to be the fleeing figure of one of Orochimaru's assistants, Kabuto. Deidara was caught between the urge to follow Kabuto to kill him and completing his assignment of bringing Kasai back to Pein._

_He grimaced at the thought of letting him go, but bringing Kasai back took first priority. The heavy wing beats of his clay bird were the only sound as Deidara flew them rapidly back to the base and away from Kabuto. He brought the bird down into a clearing approximately a mile from the base. It was a rule of Pein's that he could not fly into the base because he could be tracked too easily on the massive bird. After pulling Kasai off its back and resting her body against him Deidara performed the hand signs to dispel his creation. He hoisted her up onto his shoulder and set off walking through the forest towards the base._

_It took him about fifteen minutes to reach the base and storm down the hallways to Pein's office. He knocked with his free hand, to which Pein responded with a disgruntled, "Come in." Deidara shifted her into his arms after he pushed open the door. "What do you want me to do with Kasai? Sasori has the two-tails sealed with him." Pein was already standing when Deidara entered the room, he walked over to Deidara and examined the still body in his arms. "Where are Itachi, Sasori and Kisame?" "Sasori and Kisame went to find Itachi. He went after Sasuke." There was a long silence as Pein studied Deidara's face. It was eventually broken by his clipped command. "Watch her. If she dies, it is all on you."_

_Deidara bit back a complaint and gave a curt nod of his head to his leader. He grumbled the entire way to his room, kicked open the door and unceremoniously dropped Kasai onto his bed. For a long time he stood staring down at her before he whirled around, tore off his cloak and threw it against the wall. The cloak hardly made a sound as it hit the wall which further enraged Deidara. He jerked the scope off his eye and came within inches of slamming it down onto his desk before he caught himself. Carefully setting it down before turning around, he sighed dramatically. Minutes later, the door to the bathroom was locked and running water was clearly heard throughout the bedroom._

Everything was foggy in my mind and what little I could hear sounded as if it were coming through cotton earplugs. Then everything went crystal clear. My eyes were wide open; I could see and hear clearly, but more than that I could feel the adrenaline running through my veins. I was lying on a steel table in the middle of a laboratory, Orochimaru's laboratory. I had been here too many times to not recognize it immediately. To my right was a blank door, from which the sound of running water came. Confusion clouded my thoughts, maybe I wasn't as awake as I thought I was. Why would there be water? But running water meant someone was there… And Orochimaru didn't allow anyone into his laboratory besides Kabuto, which meant that it was one of those two and I certainly did not want to meet either one of them.

Leaping off the table I raced out of the room and down the corridor. Vaguely I registered that for some strange reason I had not been bound to the table in any way. The turns I took blurred together as each corridor looked identical to the next. It seemed that no matter how fast I ran or how many turns I took that there was no finding a way out. Then a set of double doors broke the endless pattern of steel doors and stone floors. Taking the opportunity, I burst through the double doors into an empty and dark room. I made my way cautiously to the other side of the room before leaning against the wall as exhaustion hit. Reality began to blur, my mind clouded over then everything went pitch black.

_Deidara stepped out of the bathroom, rubbing a towel on his head and wearing a pair of loose pants. He rubbed the towel over his face before tossing it back into the bathroom. Blue eyes went wide and his hands dropped from the hair he was pulling up into a ponytail. "Shit!" _

**-As usual, thank you for reading and please review! ^_^ -**


	21. T' Minus 3 Minutes and Counting

_The blankets on the bed were crumpled and empty. Deidara ran a hand through his damp hair and cursed again. "How the hell did she disappear?" He groaned and knelt down to look under the bed. Not finding her there, he threw open the closet door which revealed a mass of clothes, but no Kasai. Storming out of the room he tore down corridor after corridor, tearing open all doors he encountered. He skidded to a stop at the end of the hall and groaned. "Where the hell are you Kasai?!" Spinning to the left he spotted the giant doors slightly cracked open. A grin slid across his face, "Found you." The door groaned quietly as he pushed it open with his shoulder. Deidara was greeted by a long silence when he entered the cavern. He glanced around smirking, "Come out, come out wherever you are..." His footsteps echoed hollowly in the cavern as he searched for Kasai. "Why in hell would you come hide here anyway, Kasai." Absentmindedly he rubbed his left eye, wishing he had thought to bring his scope with him. He paced through the cavern, looking into each and every crevice he came to._

_"Gotcha." He spotted Kasai's form slumped against the wall in a far corner. He smirked and closed in on her. "Why are you hiding, hm?" Standing over her, he stared down, "Kasai?" She didn't move, her head leaned back against the wall and her face hidden by the darkness. He knelt in front of her, "Kasai?" His eyes slowly adjusted to the darkness of the cavern and he could make out the outline of her face. Gently shaking her shoulder, he scrutinized her face in confusion. "Of course you're not conscious... It only makes sense, yeah." He pulled her towards him by her shoulders and picked her up in his arms. "No more disappearing acts, yeah." Kicking the door shut behind him he carried her back to his room. He laid her down on the bed and made certain to lock his door before he turned his back on her to find his hair tie._

_Meanwhile Kisame and Sasori were having better luck in what they were trying to do. The blood trail led them through a maze of twisting corridors and seemingly random turns. The further they went along, the fresher the blood became. Walls were scorched black at various intervals and there were several rough gouges were dug deep into the walls. Kisame's grip on his sword tightened as sounds drifted through the hallway towards them. "They're just ahead." He took off with Sasori by his side. Itachi came into view, a long katana in one hand and the collar of one of Orochimaru's clones in the other. He drove the sword through the clones back and shoved him away. The clone's body vanished before it hit the floor, then Itachi turned to face Kisame and Sasori. "What took you so long? You found Kasai over an hour ago." Kisame scratched the back of his head and glanced down sheepishly, "We thought you we chasing Sasuke."_

_Itachi raised an eyebrow, "It was clearly a clone." Sasori rolled his eyes, "Not everyone has Sharingan." Itachi grunted and wiped the blood off of his katana, "Orochimaru hasn't left the base yet. He has been sending the clones to stop you guys from taking Kasai. We only have a few more minutes before he knows that we have Kasai and are going after him." Sasori and Kisame nodded, "let's go get the bastard then." A wry half smile barely flickered on the Uchiha's lips, expressing his extremely reluctant gratitude for his loud mouthed partner._

I woke up, again on the same steel table as before. The ceiling was a blank white, broken only by rows of lights. A figure stood at the end of the table, watching me. No matter how hard I tried I couldn't focus on it, a haze surrounded the figure, obscuring all details. The figure moved from where it stood and walked towards where my head lay on the table. I struggled to sit up but a hand pinned me to the table. He, I assumed, said something that I couldn't make out through the cotton in my ears. The room started spinning and my vision blurred. "Who are you?" My own voice sounded slurred. I heard a laugh then there was a pressure on my forehead. It vanished and the world proceeded to go dark.

_Deidara placed a hand on Kasai's forehead checking for a fever. He pulled his hand back and ran it through his hair again. "No fever…" Her eyes rolled back before sliding shut. "What in hell is wrong with you, hm?!" He moved to the end of the bed and flopped onto his back staring up at the ceiling. Turning his head to look at her, he yawned, "Don't you dare pull any of that crap again, yeah." With one arm over his face and his feet dangling off the edge of the side of the bed, he fell asleep. _

**-A dull chapter today, but a chapter nonetheless. Thanks for reading & reviewing!-**


	22. Dazed

**-Please comment/review or PM me with your idea for the title of the next chapter. I'm mixing things up a bit and looking for ideas for the next chapter or two.-**

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_Kisame charged down the hall with Sasori and Itachi in hot pursuit. "Where is he?" Kisame asked as they leapt over a metal railing and dropped into a concrete stairwell. "Last door on the right." Nodding in response to Itachi, Kisame kicked open the door at the bottom of the stairwell and the men burst into the hallway. A mass of Orochimaru's clones stood in the hallway, katanas in hand. Kisame spun several hand signs, leaned back, then lunged forward unleashing a torrent of water from his mouth. Many of the clones were thrown backwards by the force but were not killed. Sasori pulled out a scroll and released four of his puppets which flew towards the clones at the flick of his fingers. He gave a jerk of his head towards Itachi, "Go stop him." Needing no further prompting Itachi wove his way through the clones and to the already open door on the left. He caught a fleeting glimpse of Orochimaru and quickly directed a spout of flame to where he stood. As he saw the flame leave Itachi's lips Orochimaru smirked and disappeared. Itachi stopped dead in his tracks, "Shit!" Kisame and Sasori appeared at his side, the hallway behind them thoroughly soaked in the blood of the clones. Together they stared into the empty room in dismay. "Damn he's a slippery bastard." Kisame rested his sword on his shoulder and leaned against the doorway. "Now what?" Itachi sighed and shook his head, "Now, nothing." _

_ Pein stalked down the corridors of his base. How could Itachi have dared to leave his mission to go after Sasuke!? Pein made a sharp turn his eyes flashing dangerously. "Do you have anything to say for yourself Itachi!?" Hair had fallen out of Itachi's ponytail and now fell haphazardly across his eyes. "No. I only did what was necessary to ensure the mission's completion." Pein's ringed eyes grew wide in anger, "You went after Sasuke! He was not part of your mission!" He yelled, putting emphasis on his last sentence. However Itachi remain unruffled by his anger and kept his silence. Sasori glanced between the two men, "Deidara was misinformed. There was a clone of Sasuke intended to bait Itachi and separate us so that Orochimaru's clones could prevent us from reaching the two-tails and Kasai." Blinking in surprise Pein took this in. He regained his composure and turned on his heel. "You remember what I told you earlier Itachi. Don't forget it." With that last remark, he walked back down the hall to his office. Sasori followed Pein wordlessly to his office while Itachi and Kisame went to their respective rooms._

For the third time, I woke up. It came as a great relief when I opened my eyes and saw the familiar black and red of the Akatsuki clouds. The ceiling spun above me, forcing me to close my eyes as dizziness took over. It slowly stopped spinning around me and I turned my head to look at the cloak lying in a heap against the wall. So I was in the Akatsuki base, but how did I get here? I had no recollection of anything after Orochimaru had succeeded in getting me to summon the two-tails jinchuriki. A blonde head appeared in the corner of my vision. "You're awake again, yeah?" I groaned, "What?" He moved closer and peered curiously at me. "Yeah… you ran away the first time and I stopped you last time. You didn't know who I was, yeah." Shaking my head slowly I wracked my brain in confusion. "I don't remember waking up." Deidara scratched his head, "Huh…" He cocked his head, "You're not going to die or run away if I go get Sasori are you, hm?" I shook my head again and he left but still locked the door behind him.

I tried to sit up in bed but couldn't remain sitting upright for the pounding in my head. Throwing an arm over my eyes I sighed. Whatever drugs Orochimaru had given me, they had done their job. Lifting the arm from off my eyes I glanced down at my chest and blinked in surprise. My clothes were hardly rags! When had that happened? I plucked at the tattered brown fabric. Last time I had checked I was wearing grey… Forcing myself to sit up I pulled at the shirt. It was the grey shirt, just it was now covered in dried blood. My legs were crossed in front of me allowing me to see the gashes that covered my ankles. Slowly I looked over my body, taking inventory of the damage done in the time that I had been unconscious. While I ran my finger over a particularly deep gash on my ribs Deidara reentered the room alone. "Sasori had a report to fill out and you're my bloody responsibility, yeah!" He threw a scroll onto the bed and slammed the door shut.

_ Deidara walked over to Kasai and grabbed her wrist. He inspected the torn and bruised skin on the inside of her elbow. Releasing her arm he opened the scroll and released the seal. A roll of gauze and several rolls of cloth bandages appeared. Silently he went into the bathroom and emerged with a plastic pan full of water and a washcloth. Setting the pan down on the nightstand next to the bed he sat down beside Kasai. He pulled out a kunai and cut away what remained of Kasai's shirt before dipping the washcloth into the water. The water grew darker and darker as Deidara wiped the blood away from the cuts covering her arms, legs and torso. Satisfied that the wounds were clean Deidara covered them with gauze and then wrapped them tightly with bandages. Leaving the pan of bloody water where it was Deidara stood up and walked to his closet. After rummaging around he returned to the bed with a black scoop-necked t-shirt._

_ Kasai still looked like she was pretty heavily drugged so Deidara took the liberty of pulling the shirt over her head. She gave him a half-hearted glare, "I can dress myself." He rolled his eyes, "Whatever." Picking up the pan of bloody water he looked down at her. "Just go to sleep, yeah. "I'm in your bed." She tried to sit up and he pushed her roughly back down onto the bed with one hand. "So what, hm?" Glaring balefully at him, "I have my own bed." Deidara snorted and dumped the water down the drain in the bathroom, "If you want to sleep in your own bed you are going to have to get there yourself. Which you aren't going to do, because I was told not to let you leave my sight, and I am NOT leaving this room." Setting the pan down in the tub he folded his arms across his chest and leaned against the door. "Now shut up and go to sleep before I knock you out myself." They glared at each other for a minute before he turned back into the bathroom and shut the door behind him._

_ Kasai heard the door click shut and rolled her eyes. She pushed herself up onto her elbows and swung her legs over the edge of the bed. The room began swimming as she put her weight onto her feet. Carefully putting one foot in front of the other she made her way to the door. Her vision was blurred and the room was spinning dangerously but she walked on. It took three tries for Kasai to manage to turn the door handle and open the door. She had taken three steps into the hall when she swayed against the wall. Bracing herself against the wall Kasai rested for a minute. Once she was satisfied that she could continue on she pushed away from the wall and began walking. As she walked she was slipping deeper and deeper into a daze, unaware of her surroundings or where she was going._

_ Footsteps echoed in the hall behind her as an extremely annoyed Deidara ran the short distance after her. He grabbed her by the arm and pressed a finger against her temple, "Kon suimin." She slumped to the floor as sleep hit her. Deidara scooped her back up and carried her back to his room. "I told you not to go anywhere. You're going to regret making me do that in the morning, yeah." He dropped her on his couch and flopped onto his bed. "I'll chain you there if you do anything else that could get me in trouble with Pein-sama, yeah." Silence settled over the room as Deidara drifted off to sleep. _

**-Side note! 'Kon suimin' means 'sleep now'. Please review and thanks for reading! -**


	23. Innocence

_Itachi and Kisame lounged on the couches in their living room. "Where's Kasai?" Kisame asked, looking pointedly at the open door of her room. Itachi raised an eyebrow, "Probably with Deidara or Sasori." Just then Sasori knocked on the door. Kisame grunted in response and Sasori stepped in. "To the cavern. Find Hidan and Kakuzu." He received a nod in response from Itachi then turned to leave. Pushing himself up off the couch, Kisame pulled on his cloak. "Why does Pein want to seal the two-tails so soon? We aren't going to be of much use so soon after the mission." Itachi too stood up, his cloak already on. "Hn." The two partners walked in silence down the hall._

_Hidan's door was tightly locked and a number of strange noises were coming from behind the door. Kisame shrugged before pounding on the door. "Get to the cavern!" Walking across the hall he repeated the process with Kakuzu. Hidan emerged from his room with his cloak slung over his shoulder. Blood stained the Jashin symbol that hung on a chain around his neck. Catching Kisame's look at his symbol he gave a cocky smirk and strutted down the hall ahead of Itachi and Kisame. Before he went through the iron doors to the cavern the cloak was pulled off his shoulder and put on in a swish of fabric. Kakuzu, Itachi and Kisame followed him into the darkness quietly._

_On the other end of the base, Sasori had just informed Deidara that he was to report to the cavern immediately. Deidara picked his cloak up off of the floor then proceeded to pull it onto his shoulders. Staring at Kasai lying asleep on the couch he glanced between the door and her. He decided that she was not to be trusted, even if she was under a sleeping spell. His closet was thrown open and he rummaged around for a moment before finding a pair of handcuffs. The closet door was left slightly ajar as he walked over to her. It was quite obvious that there was no place for him to cuff her to on the couch unless he wanted to put her on the floor. Deciding against putting her on the floor, Deidara picked her up and put her on his bed none too gently. He closed one end of the handcuffs around her left wrist. Pulling her wrist above her head he latched the handcuff to the bed post. Satisfied with his work, Deidara quickly left the room and headed for the cavern._

_When Deidara arrived in the cavern everyone else was already gathered there. Pein's eyes flickered in his direction before returning to the other men. "We'll begin now." He performed a series of hand-signs, knelt and pressed his palm against the rocky ground. A loud rumble echoed throughout the cavern, shaking the ground and making the walls tremble. Clouds of dust rose from the floor obscuring the massive figure that rose up out of the earth. The rumbling ground to a stop and the dust cleared revealing the Sealing Statue, otherwise known as the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path. It was a monk, his legs crossed and chained, his manacled wrists were held up in front of him and a scroll was clenched in his teeth. One by one the Akatsuki took their respective places on the monk's fingers._

_Pein was the last to take his place, watching with satisfaction as the kanji on the rings of the monk began to glow as each man took his place. "Zetsu, keep guard of the entrance. We are not to be disturbed." Zetsu gave a curt nod and vanished. A shimmering mirage of Zetsu's figure took his place. Another series of hand-signs were performed by Pein and another groan emerged from the statue on which they stood. The scroll dropped from out of its mouth as the mouth opened with a groan. Nine chakra dragons emerged and snaked down towards the scroll. They surrounded the scroll, carrying it up of the ground into the air in a mass of chakra. The scroll unfurled revealing the symbols etched on the canvas._

_A low hum filled the air as the two-tailed demon was extracted from the scroll and suspended in the air. There was a loud screech when the demon awoke. The dragons circled the cat-like demon, chaining it with chakra as they circled. Hours passed as the dragons bound the demon within itself. The silhouettes of the men stood silent and tall on the statues fingers. When the demon was completely bound the dragons circled it one last time before diving at it and vanishing. The jaw of the statue began to close. A hiss escaped as the bound demon was pulled into the gaping maw of the statue. Moments later, the mouth was clamped tightly around the scroll. One of the statue's nine eyes blinked open and stared straight ahead blankly. The kanji of the rings on the statue faded from sight._

_The empty scroll fell into Pein's hand from where it was suspended in the air. He rolled it over then gestured for the men to leave. They leapt down from their perches and headed to the doors. Kakuzu, Sasori and Itachi were the first to disappear into the corridors. Hidan, Kisame and Deidara walked together towards their rooms. Deidara's room was the first that the group of men came to. Hidan and Kisame stopped outside his door, "Why aren't you going to get something to eat?" Deidara shook his head "I have to stay with Kasai in case she wakes up. She's a handful and I don't want her disappearing again, yeah." He opened his door and Hidan's eyes flew open wide. "Holy shit Deidara! I didn't think you were that type of guy!" Kisame smirked revealing sharp teeth, "Oh you are one kinky bastard Deidara." Surprise was written all over Deidara's face as he stared at Kisame and Hidan. "She kept trying to get away, yeah!" Hidan had a wicked look in his eye, "She may be a handful when you don't know how to handle her… Besides it looks like you went a little rough on her; she is dead to the world." Kisame's shoulders started shaking as he tried to contain his laughter. He burst out laughing and turned away. The smirk still plastered on his face, Hidan followed Kisame. "If you ever need any… uh… tips, let me know!" He called over his shoulder as he walked after Kisame. An astonished Deidara was left standing outside his room staring at their backs._

_"What the hell just happened?" He muttered under his breath as he shut the door behind him. Slumping against the door he turned his blue eyes to Kasai. She lay on her side, her left arm stretched above her where it was handcuffed to the bed-post. A hand slipped into his pocket and fingered the cool metal of the key. "Nah…" He decided against releasing her since he planned on going to sleep in a bit. Pushing away from the door he sauntered over to the couch and promptly fell asleep._

_Further down the corridor Kisame and Hidan caught up with Kakuzu, Sasori and Itachi in the main living room. "So what do you think Pein is going to do with Kasai now?" Kisame asked. Hidan snickered "After Deidara is done with her that is." Several curious glances were sent his way as he and Kisame cracked up. "He…" Hidan doubled over laughing. "He has Kasai handcuffed to his fucking bedpost!" This comment made the eyebrows of the men sitting in the living room go up. "That sounds like something you would do, not Deidara." Kakuzu gave Hidan a pointed look which Hidan shrugged off. "Maybe Deidara has a bit of a twisted side." Sasori gave a shudder, "I don't want to think about that…" Another round of laughter went up. "No one knows what Pein is going to do with her. For all we know, he could tell one of us to get rid of her before she gets kidnapped again." Kakuzu interjected as an answer to Kisame's question. "That'd be a damned waste of a perfectly good kunoichi." Everyone turned to look at Itachi who shrugged as he stood up. "She was just as powerful as any of us, even in the state she was when she fought Kisame, Hidan and Zetsu."_

_Kisame nodded grudgingly and Hidan groaned, "That little bitch wouldn't die…" He leaned back on the couch sulking. Silence fell over the group as they contemplated what Itachi had said. Zetsu chose this moment to walk in. "Pein wants Kasai to report to him as soon as she is in good health." He glanced at Kakuzu, "The shipment will arrive in Konoha tomorrow. Don't let it get there." Kakuzu nodded and Zetsu turned to Kisame, "You and Itachi are to find men who took the Twelfth Forbidden Scroll. And Sasori, you are to infiltrate Orochimaru's base, Tobi will be your partner." He ran a hand through his green hair and left the room after relaying Pein's orders. Hidan stood up and snickered as he left, "That means Deidara is allll alone with Kasai…"_

My head was pounding when I started to gain some semblance of consciousness. The room I was in was for the most part dark, with a patch of light filtering in from the skylight on the ceiling. I was lying on my side facing the bathroom door. After deciding that having slept through the night meant I was now capable of getting back to my room on my own, I tried to roll out of the bed. A spasm ran through my back, temporarily paralyzing me. My hands moved instinctively to my back, but one was stopped immediately by the cold grasp of iron. "Are you bloody kidding me?!" I jerked my wrist, sure enough; there was the tell-tale clank of metal on metal. "What in hell!?" I growled out loud. Again I moved to sit up and the spasms hit me again, although not as bad this time. Frustrated and angry I shook my wrist, pulling on the handcuffs and making them rattle loudly. Here I was, practically paralyzed and handcuffed to the bed. Deidara was going to pay dearly for this.

I heard a rustle then Deidara's figure appeared. He stood in front of me, his arms crossed over his chest. "Hmm… See what happens when you don't listen to me, yeah?" Shooting upright was my first reaction, and damn, did I regret it. The spasms of pain that gripped me made black spots dance at the edge of my vision. "Gah, what the hell Deidara?!" I was now on my back, one arm cuffed above my head and the other tightly wrapped around my torso. Deidara moved closer so he was standing over me and smirked. "I knew you'd regret it in the morning, yeah." He reached into his pocket to pull out the key and proceeded to unlock the handcuffs. Tsking loudly he grabbed my shoulder and pulled me into a sitting position. "It'll wear off eventually, until then don't move to fast, yeah." The door clicked then slammed shut after him. "You twisted bastard!" I yelled at the closed door. My fingers crept up to my neck, feeling over the bandages until I found the cold metal of the choker. Maybe I would have to wait for revenge on Deidara, but after the choker was off, and after I had sufficiently tortured Itachi for putting it on me then… Then Deidara would pay the price.

**-Thank you to xXNaomiXx for the inspiration for this chapter! Enjoy!-**


	24. Moneybags & Jashinism

Each of the fifteen minutes it took me to reach my room and change out of my tattered pants I cursed Deidara. Despite having slept through the entire night in Deidara's bed I felt completely exhausted and stiff. Deidara had not left any instruction for me, nor had Pein. Giving in to sleep was easy; all it took was three minutes after I lay down on my bed.

_Kakuzu stood beside Hidan on the wall around Konoha. Shadows fell over the pair, covering the glint of Hidan's scythe which rested beside him. The gates in the wall were flung open with masses of people walking in and out of the village. Kakuzu watched with jaded green eyes. His partner's distinctive purple eyes scanned through the crowd, his fingers twitching on the scythe. "Where are those little pieces of shit?" "By the edge of the forest." Hidan gave Kakuzu an incredulous look, "Why the fuck are we still standing here?!" Let's get this the fuck over with!" Kakuzu shook his head, "With the way you rush headlong into things I'm surprised you aren't dead yet." "You wish." However, Hidan remained on the wall with Kakuzu, obscured from view by the shadows._

_Kakuzu stirred slightly as the couriers stepped tentatively out of the shadow of the trees and onto the bustling path. He tilted his head towards the couriers, "Don't raise attention." Hidan raised an eyebrow but followed him quietly into the crowd. His slicked back silver hair turned black and his purple eyes faded to grey. The scythe which was as much a permanent part of his attire as anything else, disappeared into thin air. Hidan had previous missions in Konoha and would immediately be associated with the Akatsuki if recognized. As a result neither Kakuzu nor Hidan were wearing the Akatsuki's trademark cloak, instead they wore long grey cloaks, which in Hidan's case was opened down the middle to reveal his bare chest. They mingled into the crowd, weaving their way leisurely amongst the people, all the while moving closer to the oblivious couriers._

_The couriers were a male and a female dressed in typical Konoha attire, bluish black pants and shirt and an army green flak jacket. Keeping a hand firmly grasped around the hilt of her katana, the female courier led the way through the crowd. Her eyes flitted through the crowd, trying to pick out potential ambushers. It was rather difficult for Hidan and Kakuzu to follow the couriers through the crowd because of the way the blended in with the hundreds of other Konoha ninja. A blonde dressed in an orange jumpsuit dashed recklessly in front of Hidan, bumping him roughly. Hidan lunged after him, his fingers just millimeters from his collar when he was hurtled backwards. Regaining his footing he snapped at Kakuzu, "What the hell Kakuzu?! That little heathen ran into me!" His angry glare was met with a surprisingly level gaze. "Calm yourself. Besides the Chunin exams are in a few days. Waste your own time planning an 'accident' for him." "So help me Jashin, that brat is going to die a painful death." He glared at the people around him, "Why are there so many fucking people?" The look that flickered through Kakuzu's eyes was that of murderous annoyance. "They are preparing for the Chunin exams. Why don't you try putting things together for yourself next time, dumbass?" "You only know because you're going to fucking bet on the winners." Hidan muttered sullenly as he rudely pushed his way through a group of people. "Where the hell are they?"_

_A loud protest went up from the group that Hidan had just stormed through. Hidan flicked a finger up over his shoulder and kept on walking. Kakuzu snickered behind his mask. "That's one way to make friends." By now they were walking just behind the two couriers, separated only by a few people. The female kept glancing back at Kakuzu and Hidan and gestured to her partner. He too looked back at them and his face contorted in fear. "Forget meeting him. I'm not risking it." His words drifted back to Kakuzu and Hidan as he picked up his pace. The woman made a move to follow him, but he raised a hand. "Stall them." She grimaced but held her ground as Hidan and Kakuzu rapidly advanced._

_A black thread snaked out from under Kakuzu's cloak and wound its way along the ground to the woman's ankle. It shot up her back and wrapped around her neck. Eyes flying wide as the tip of the thread pressed like a dagger against her neck, she moved to pull her katana out of its sheath. Kakuzu closed the distance between them and towered in front of her. "If you value your life, you will leave that pretty little sword of yours right where it is and do exactly as I say." She gulped, her hand leaving the hilt of the sword reluctantly. Kakuzu nodded, "Turn around and walk towards your partner. Don't make a sound or you will regret it." He looked up and saw Hidan had circled around the other courier and was now walking head-on towards the oblivious man. Sometime in between Kakuzu stopping the female and his circling around through the crowd, Hidan's scythe had reappeared in his hand._

_He stopped in front of the courier and smirked, "Going somewhere?" Kakuzu was just behind him with the woman still in the grasp of his threads. A similar thread wrapped around the man's neck and pressed into his skin. "Just walk to that alley quietly and you may make it out with your head." The man didn't make a sound but tried to peel away the thread with his hands. Kakuzu's eyes narrowed and threads shot out from under his cloak to jerk his hands down to his sides. "Walk." His voice was laced with anger causing Hidan to raise an eyebrow warily. The courier's eyes darted around wildly as he slowly took one step after another, knowing that once he entered the alley and was out of sight of everyone else that he was going to be dead._

_Getting the two couriers into the alley didn't require much maneuvering. Every move they made was countered by a tightening of the threads around their throats and a threat from Hidan or Kakuzu. The other ninja in the crowd rushed by them, ignorant of the fate the two couriers were about to face. When Hidan and Kakuzu got the two deep into the alleyway, Hidan released the disguising jutsu that he had used and Kakuzu slammed the man against the wall. "Where is it?" The man grunted in pain but didn't give Kakuzu an answer. "Fuck it. Let's kill them." For once Kakuzu agreed with Hidan. He removed the strings from their necks and let Hidan do his dirty work. "Make it quick. We don't have time to waste." That was one order that Hidan had no trouble carrying out. The three-bladed scythe was ignored in favor of a kunai, seeing that the alleyway wasn't near wide enough for Hidan to wield the scythe properly._

_Blood splattered as he drove the knife deep into the woman's chest as she tried to pull out her sword. He pinned her against the wall, twisting the knife deeper and watching the array of expressions that crossed her face as the life faded from her. Kakuzu grunted, "The other guy is getting away Hidan." It was obvious that he could stop the fleeing man at any time, but he preferred to let Hidan do the work. Hidan dropped the female courier's bleeding body onto the ground in annoyance, thereby sparing her an even more painful death. He took off running after the man, throwing the kunai as he ran. It lodged in his thigh, bringing him crashing to the ground screaming in pain. Kakuzu's strings immediately wrapped themselves over his mouth, silencing any further sounds. Hidan jerked his kunai out of the man's leg and glared at Kakuzu, "I was fucking enjoying hearing this heathen scream." His hand plunged down and the kunai sunk into his left ribcage. It was lifted up and thrust down again in the same spot. However, Hidan quickly grew bored with stabbing him because he could reap the full benefits of his pain or his screams and quickly cut his throat._

_His shirt was torn away and Hidan reached for the package that rested on his chest but Kakuzu's threads snatched it before he could. "Damn you to hell!" He cursed at Kakuzu and stood up. The man was kicked into the shadows, forgotten by both Hidan and Kakuzu. "Fucking moneybag!" "Shut up idiot. This was our objective and I do not trust a fool like you with it." Hidan swung his scythe at Kakuzu who blocked it easily. "One of these days I'm going to kill you, you insufferable idiot."_

**-A huge thank you to Zach for sending my notebook back to me. Thank you to chomp0 for the reviews ^_^ _Life goes on..._-**


	25. A Swarm, a Scroll and a Bang

_Kisame's bright blue hair stood out sharply in the forest of green. "Can you feel his chakra signature?" "Hn." Itachi nodded, "He is trying to use the Forbidden Technique to open the scroll." Kisame raised an eyebrow, "Shouldn't we stop him?" Itachi's raven black hair fell into his face as he shook his head. "He doesn't have enough chakra to fulfill the jutsu." A branch snapped under Kisame's foot and he glared down at it. A sudden surge of chakra filled the air. Both Itachi and Kisame took off towards the source of the chakra. They came to a relatively small cave from which emanated a fading glow of chakra. Kisame reached for the handle of Samehada but Itachi raised one hand up. Two fingers pointing towards the sky, the signal for his partner to wait for his signal to take action. Kisame closed his large hand around the handle and flexed his muscles. Cautiously, Itachi stepped into the cave. He leapt backwards almost immediately and Kisame lunged forward, swinging his sword in a large arc. _

_ A cloud of bats swarmed Kisame, squeaking and squealing as his sword connected with a few of them. Kisame swatted at the bats and snapped at a few, his razor sharp teeth grazing their wings and driving them into a frenzy. Samehada rested on the ground and Kisame's normally perfectly spiked hair was in a haphazard mess. "I'm going to fucking kill you Itachi!" He roared, his voice echoing through the trees for miles. The barest hint of a smile twitched on Itachi's lips. "I hate your bloody prodigy guts! Why the hell!?" Kisame bellowed, picking up Samehada and swinging at Itachi. Itachi dodged easily and Kisame swung again. "You ignorant, annoying, cocky little bastard!" Kisame spluttered out, his face turning purple as he missed Itachi again and again. He swung around in a rage and slammed Samehada into the nearest tree, shredding a massive portion of its trunk to bits. "Gah! I hate you!" He seethed as he turned back around to Itachi. _

_ "I never gave the signal to attack. That was your own fault." Kisame swung his sword again and glared in frustration at Itachi as it slammed into the dirt. "Damn you to hell and back." Itachi had a devilish gleam in his eye as he turned back to the cave. A flame flickered on the tips of his fingers, forming a crackling ball of fire that floated into the cave above Itachi. The man lay prone on the floor his arms outstretched beside him. Resting in the palm of one hand was the Twelfth Forbidden Scroll. His hand and sleeve was charred black and the Twelfth Forbidden Scroll rested in his charred palm. Kisame poked him with the end of Samehada. The man groaned and his hand closed around the scroll. Watching his face carefully Itachi pressed his sandaled foot down on his wrist. When the man's hand didn't open up Itachi nudged his fingers from around the scroll and picked it up. _

_The scroll rested lightly in the palm of his hand. Small black char lines spread out from the scroll across his palm. Red chakra twisted up into the air and dissipated into the scroll. Quickly realizing what the scroll was trying to do, Itachi pulled out a cloth and wrapped the scroll into it. He offered it to Kisame who backed away with hands raised. "I don't want to deal with that shit. You can be the one to get attacked by the lunatics that want that thing." Itachi chuckled darkly and tucked it into his cloak. "Let's go then, hn?" Kisame nodded, "You better watch your back Uchiha. If it's not a nutcase after the scroll then it may be me trying to kill you. And I am not one that you take lightly." _

The ceiling of my room had never seemed so fascinating to me. What I had previously thought was a plain white surface was actually covered in all sorts of bright flashes of light and random specks of color. Whatever Deidara had done last night, or was it the night before... well it had done its job and more. Not to mention the fact that I had no chakra to ease the headache or stiffness. Damn, it sucked being 'normal'. My normally focused mind was anywhere but where I needed it to be. When was the last time I had been able to sleep in? What was it like to drive a car? This, I couldn't blame on Deidara. This was Orochimaru's doing. Him and his drugs. What the hell kind of drug puts you to sleep and the after-effect is jitters and lack of concentration?!

The clock on my desk said that it was two in the afternoon and that forty-five minutes had passed since I woke up. Forty-five minutes and I still hadn't moved from where I lay. I groaned in frustration and grabbed the pillow out from under my head. Staring at it for a second, I hurled it across the room at the clock. It felt like an eternity before there was a bang from the clock hitting the floor. I jolted upright and stared in alarm at the pillow on the floor. It was like I had just woken up, even though I fully remembered hurling the pillow and drifting through a haze while staring at the ceiling. "Well shit..." I was so confused.

**-I apologize for the long wait time for this chapter. I have no excuses, well I do... but I'll save them for people who need them. Thanks for reading, thanks for the reviews guys ^_^ -**


	26. Double Crossing

_Tobi trailed quietly behind Sasori. A bright eye peaked out of the lone hole in his mask but he kept his silence. The sky was dark as it always was in the Rain Village. Rain spattered in the mud around them, splashing droplets of brown dirt onto the hem of their cloaks. Pulling the cloak further over his head, Sasori groaned. "Even though sand gets into the puppets' joints I still prefer the desert." Tobi bounded up a few steps so he was walking next to Sasori, "Tobi loves the rain." Sasori jerked his arm up to Tobi's neck. A knife protruded from his wrist and glinted dangerously in the rain. "Cut the crap Madara." Tobi's entire demeanor changed in that split instant. He raised one gloved hand and pushed Sasori's blade away dismissively. "Don't use my name." The blade slid back into Sasori's wrist. "I will use your name any way I please, Madara." Sasori pointed an accusing finger, "Even if it is to send you back to rotting in your grave." The Tobi persona was entirely gone now and Madara chuckled. Pushing the mask off his face and onto the top of his head, he turned his face upwards into the rain. "You have no idea how much I hate that mask." Sasori rolled his eyes. "Save it. We have to find a way to pacify Orochimaru now." Madara ran a hand over his face, closing his eyes and sighing. "I thought we arranged for him to get what he wanted." "We did. But Itachi was determined to get Kasai back. So we got our end of the bargain and he didn't get his." Rivulets of rain ran down Madara's face. "We should kill him already. He is going to know that I'm not Obito." Shaking his head slightly Sasori disagreed with Madara. "We can't kill him until we have someone else capable of capturing the remaining demons." _

_Silence fell over the two as they walked between the tall metal buildings. Sasori led the way down a back alley flooded with water that had bits of trash floating in it. The water sloshed around their ankles flowing faster by them as the alley sloped downward. Towering steel buildings rose on either side blocking out most all of the light as they descended. The alleyway ended in a circular pavilion. Water rushed over the edge of the concrete and into a raging whirlpool below. A tangled mass of gutters hung from the roofs and emptied torrents of rainwater into the whirlpool. Madara reached up and pulled the orange mask back down over his face. The clanging of the metal grating under their feet was drowned out by the roar of the water. Sasori stepped over a piece of metal pipe and around a gaping hole in the metal grating. A set of steps rose out of the walkway and wound around the edge of the buildings around the pavilion. Twisted pieces of rusted metal protruded from the steel wall. Sasori gripped a piece and pulled himself up so he could step into a large cavity in the wall. Madara copied his actions and swung himself up and into the opening. _

_Just inside the crevice was an ominous looking door completely hidden from view from the outside and still nearly invisible against the shadowy grey gloom. Casting a warning glance at Madara, Sasori deftly drew a sign on the door and it swung open with a low creak. A trickle of water ran slowly down the corridor the door opened into. Orochimaru emerged at the end of the corridor and paced towards Sasori and Madara. "Sasori. Obito." They both nodded to greet Orochimaru and Sasori allowed the door to swing shut behind him. "Do you have an explanation for the reason that you didn't fill your end of the bargain?" Orochimaru hissed. "Itachi. It's hard to control people who are not aware of our partnership." Sasori's voice was level, revealing nothing. "Pein gave the order for him to bring back Kasai, and we were unable to prevent him stopping your clones from reaching Kasai." He paused, "We did warn you that you needed to have Kasai somewhere she couldn't be tracked to."_

_A long tongue flicked past Orochimaru's lips as his eyes narrowed. "You got your end of the bargain. I want mine. If I don't have Kasai within two weeks, our agreement is over." He turned on his heel and stalked away angrily. Arms crossed, Sasori watched Orochimaru fade into blackness. His eyes flashed as he turned back around and back through the door. Madara followed him, "You're just going to leave it at that?" A quick motion of the red-head's hand silenced Madara. "There is nothing we can do. We need the remaining demons and Orochimaru is the quickest way to them. However, I'm not sure if we should allow Orochimaru to have Kasai. Itachi seems to think that she could be a formidable opponent." They stepped back out into the rain and ducked under a gutter pipe that lay haphazardly above the opening in the wall.. "We should find out for ourselves." Sasori looked up at the sky for a moment, "Maybe, I'll persuade Pein to allow Itachi to release her from the chakra hold." Adjusting the mask over his face Madara grunted. "We should do it soon then. We still have much to do to get everyone else on board with our plan as it is. She is just another part." Sasori glared, "So are you, so shut up and get back to the base. Tell Deidara to keep Kasai under close watch." Madara dipped his head and in a swirl of black mist disappeared._

**-Took me long enough, eh? Well here it is, hope you enjoy it! Thanks for reading, etc. ^_^-**

_**~Any fool can know, the point is to understand~**_


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